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It has been nearly seven years since the passage of the Justice and Peace Law (JPL) in Colombia. The process continues today amidst controversies and important reflections on the direction it should take. What progress has been made and what are the shortcomings of how the law has been implemented?

With the goal of creating an opportunity for debate between civil society and the Colombian government on JPL reform, ICTJ and the Mission to Support the Peace Process from the Organization of American States have organized an event titled “Challenges and Opportunities of the Justice and Peace Law Reform,” to take place May 14 in Bogotá.

Transitional justice, at the core of its mission, strives to “break the ground on a future of peace and stability.” For countries with a violent or repressive past—and this can be said of most—implementing truth-seeking, criminal justice, reparations, and institutional reform measures forms the basis for establishing a culture of justice and respect for the rule of law.

Granito: How to Nail a Dictator, a recent documentary from Skylight Pictures, shows the international effort that has worked tirelessly to bring Montt to account for his crimes. ICTJ is pleased to announce that Granito will be aired on Thursday, June 28 at 10pm on the PBS series P.O.V.

July 1, 2012 marked the 10th anniversary of the International Criminal Court (ICC). On this day in 2002, the Rome Statute entered into force to establish the world’s first permanent, international criminal tribunal. On this occasion, we invited ICC Judge Silvia Fernandez de Gurmendi to speak with us for ICTJ’s latest podcast. [Download](/sites/default/files/Fernandez_ICTJ_Podcast_06172012.mp3) | Duration: 18:32mins | File size: 10.6MB

After several months of intense political debate, Colombia’s Senate passed constitutional reform measures containing extensive transitional justice provisions. The Legal Framework for Peace was adopted to confront decades of massive human rights violations and help to bring a sustainable peace to Colombia’s ongoing internal armed conflict.

Why pursue transitional justice in the aftermath of massive human rights violations? “The Case for Justice” provides a window into the debate about the relevance of transitional justice in today’s world.

As we mark July 17, designated International Justice Day by the states parties of the International Criminal Court (ICC) just over two years ago, we should not limit our focus to the work of the court or criminal justice as such. Pursuing justice in the aftermath of atrocity presents an opportunity to do three crucial things: reaffirm a society’s shared values about basic ideas of right and wrong; restore confidence in the institutions of the state charged with protecting fundamental rights and freedoms; and recognize the human dignity of the victims of atrocities that have taken place.

As Colombia marked International Justice Day, the importance of accountability for violations committed during the decades of conflict was underscored in the number of victims awaiting justice—376,000 registered in the Attorney General’s Office, more than 4 million in total. And while July 17 is celebrated as the date of adoption of the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court, it is clear that in countries like Colombia accountability extends beyond criminal trials.