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Resource Library

The Resource Library stores all of ICTJ’s published works since 2001 to the present, grouped by category and searchable by key word, country, issue, language, and more.

We are continually adding new content from our archives, especially our Multimedia content. Check back regularly to explore newly added videos, photo galleries, and audio products.

Finding a Shared Truth and Justice in Kosovo

More than 20 years after the end of the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s, Kosovo is still contending with unresolved ethnic tensions. Formerly an autonomous region of Serbia within the former Yugoslavia, Kosovo declared independence in 2008. Ethnic tensions were a root cause of the violent conflicts, during which an estimated 140,000 died and numerous atrocities were committed. ICTJ recently sat down with ICTJ's Anna Myriam Roccatello and Kelli Muddell to learn more about ICTJ's work and the present challenges to truth and justice in the country.

08/18/23

by Caroline Nowak

A man points at photographs of people covering the wall of a room.

'All Our Tears': The Lingering Consequences of War in the Western Balkans

The photography exhibition “All Our Tears” weaves together the stories of victims from the wars in the Western Balkan region in the 1990s. It consists of photographs taken by four photographers in various locations in Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Serbia, and was part of a three-year project funded by the European Union that brought together civil society organizations and victims’ groups in Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Serbia, along with the international organizations ICTJ and PAX to develop meaningful, victim-led peacebuilding and reconciliation initiatives in the region.

07/24/23

A woman holds up two halves of a ripped photograph and looks out from between them.

The Force of the Police: An Analysis of Police Violence Based on Experience in the United States and the Imperative to Restore Legitimacy

George Floyd’s death reignited existing anger over American society’s deep and festering racial wounds. His death triggered significant social uprisings that have challenged the methods of policing that have emerged over the course of several decades. With a growing awareness of polic...

12/09/22

by

Roberto Cornelli

Three police officers kneel with several protesters at a demonstration.

2021 Year in Review

In 2021, there were significant developments, some hopeful and some devastating, in the struggle for truth, accountability, and redress in countries around the world. ICTJ experts covered these events in commentaries and feature stories published on our website and in our newsletters. While 2022 is already underway and we at ICTJ are hard at work, we would like to pause a moment to take stock and reflect on the year that was.

01/25/22

Alive in the Demand for Change: Transitional Justice and Prevention in Peru

This study examines the preventive effect of transitional justice in Peru in the aftermath of internal conflict and authoritarianism, focusing on the violence’s root causes and the differentiated impact on victims and affected communities. It contends that while transitional justice h...

07/09/21

by

Julie Guillerot

Transitional Justice and Prevention: Summary Findings from Five Country Case Studies

This report summarizes the findings of an ICTJ research project on the contribution of transitional justice to prevention. Drawing from five country case studies, it contends that addressing the past can help to prevent the recurrence not only of human rights violations but also viole...

06/28/21

by

Roger Duthie

A young person with back facing the viewer is wearing a T-shirt that reads “Colombia in Peace"

Truth, Accountability, and Asset Recovery: How Transitional Justice Can Fight Corruption

On March 2 and 3, 2020, transitional justice and anti-corruption policymakers, experts, and activists from the Gambia, Kenya, South Africa, Armenia, and Tunisia met in Tunis for a two-day conference to share solutions to a common problem: How can countries emerging from dictatorship, ...

08/27/20

by

Ruben Carranza

Special Report on COVID-19: Keeping Justice in Sight

Sparing almost no corner of the world from its wrath, the COVID-19 pandemic has now spread to every country. In an effort to slow the contagion, governments in most countries have been taking drastic measures requiring all residents other than essential workers to confine themselves in their homes, and shutting down vast sectors of their economies. The impact has been crushing. COVID-19 has profoundly affected every country where ICTJ currently works: Armenia, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Ethiopia, Gambia, Kenya, Lebanon, Libya, Sudan, Syria, Tunisia, and Uganda. We recently caught up with ICTJ’s heads of country programs to learn more about the impact the pandemic is having on transitional justice and society more broadly.

05/19/20

Ending Gender Violence in Elections: Inclusion of Women in Kenyan Politics and the National Dialogue Process from a Transitional Justice Perspective

In its primary findings, Kenya's Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission noted that women and girls have been subject to systematic, state-sanctioned discrimination in all spheres of their lives, and that the state has failed to take measures to end the practices that restrict wo...

01/23/20

by

Agatha Ndonga and Kelli Muddell

Can Building Bridges Break the Cycles of Corruption and Political Violence in Kenya?

In its report, the Kenya Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission concluded that “corruption is endemic in Kenya” and that “there is a direct link between corruption and gross violation of human rights.” This paper considers the extent of impunity for corruption in Kenya, how corr...

11/26/19

by

Agatha Ndonga and Ruben Carranza

Molding Justice: Women's Voices from the Tunis Gender Conference

ICTJ’s Gender Symposium, held on February 2 to 4, 2019, in Tunis, Tunisia, brought together fearless women leaders working in 8 countries to advance the needs of victims and to bring gender issues to the center of transitional justice processes. What was achieved? What experiences cut across these diverse contexts? Kelli Muddell and Sibley Hawkins reflect on these questions and more in this short podcast.

05/15/19

Situating Security Sector Reforms in Kenya’s Discourse on Inclusion and National Dialogue Process

This paper explores political exclusion in Kenya and its consequences on the social fabric of the nation. It draws from past governmental reports and analysis to formulate new recommendations that can inform current discourse. It first provides an overview of ethnicity in Kenya. It th...

04/17/19

by

Christopher Gitari

Kenya: Still Grappling with a Stalled Transitional Justice Mandate

Many countries have endured a violent past or a dictatorship that left behind a trail of human rights violations. During transitions to peaceful societies or democracies, there is a need to address that painful past to ensure that the violations do not recur in future. While some countries have made or are making laudable efforts to deal with the atrocities of the past, others like Kenya are regrettably still at the phase of wishing the painful past away.

12/17/18

by

'Prince of Peace' and ICTJ Founder Alex Boraine Laid to Rest

Alex Boraine, founder of the ICTJ and soldier in the struggle for human rights around the world, will be laid to rest in Cape Town today. He has been called the “Prince of Peace” for his lifelong commitment to transforming South Africa’s society through truth, reconciliation, justice, following the horrors of apartheid.

12/12/18

Documentary Film Promotes Dialogue on Repairing a Legacy of State Violence and Exclusion in Northern Kenya

Kenyan media house Africa Uncensored has teamed up with the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) on a documentary that explores the Bulla Karatasi massacre that took place in the northern region of Garissa, Kenya, and its impact on communities in the North. The documentary will advance ICTJ’s efforts to partner with civil society on community-state dialogue initiatives, engage stakeholders around political and constitutional reforms stemming from the TJRC’s recommendations, and achieve redress for the legacy of state violence in Garissa and other communities in Northern Kenya.

11/19/18

Sri Lanka’s Wavering Commitment to Accountability for Enforced Disappearances

Enforced disappearances continue to affect hundreds of thousands of people around the world. The hopes of Sri Lankan victims reached a peak in 2015, when President Maithripala Sirisena was elected on a centrist platform and a commitment to truth, justice, and reconciliation. Later that year, the Sri Lankan government agreed to a UN Human Rights Council resolution that offered a roadmap for the search for the missing and forcibly disappeared. To the dismay of many, however, the government has done little since to implement these commitments and to take the opinions of victims seriously.

08/29/18

Holding a Mirror to Society: Acknowledgment and the Struggle for Indigenous Peoples Rights

Indigenous peoples are still some of the most marginalized and vulnerable communities around the world. In a conflict, they are often some of the most affected as their resource-rich territories are coveted by powerful and violent groups, their identity and loyalty perceived with mistrust, and their...

08/08/18

Amid Ethnic Cleansing in Myanmar, Where Does Transitional Justice Stand?

During the past month, over 400,000 members of Myanmar’s Rohingya Muslim community have been driven from their homes as part of an ethnic cleansing campaign led by the military. What lies at the root of the current violence, how is it connected to political transition, and does transitional justice have a role to play? ICTJ's Anna Myriam Roccatello answers those questions and more.

09/25/17

To Prevent Enforced Disappearances, Rethink the Justice and Security Equation

With enforced disappearances on the rise, ICTJ President David Tolbert says the path to prevention is clear: the international community must reorder its priorities and change its approach. The disproportionate attention on counterterrorism takes us further away from accountability and prevention, Tolbert writes. He urges the international community to lead the way in unequivocally censoring governments that use enforced disappearance as a political tactic — and ensuring there can be no impunity for this crime.

08/30/17

Kenya's Security Sector Needs to Learn from the Past to Safeguard the Nation at this Critical Moment

Kenya is just days away from the 2017 general election, but challenges dot the horizon, including the recent assassination of an election official. ICTJ's Chris Gitari calls for a strong, accountable security sector and the implementation of the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission Report.

08/02/17

“You Don’t Forget Your Torturers”: Wachira Waheire’s 30-Year Quest for Justice in Kenya

In 1986, Wachira Waheire was whisked off the street, taken to Kenya's most infamous torture chamber, and sentenced to four years in prison. Over the next 30 years, his quest for justice led him to meetings with his torturers to courtroom showdowns with the country's Attorney General. Discover his ongoing struggle for truth, acknowledgement, and reparations alongside all survivors of abuse in Kenya.

05/30/17

UN Inquiry in Myanmar Is a Moment of Truth for Aung San Suu Kyi’s Commitment to Justice

For decades, successive Myanmar political and military leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi’s, have flatly denied what millions of their citizens know: that the military has committed and continues to commit human rights violations. A new UN inquiry into those crimes is provides a moment of truth for Suu Kyi's commitment to justice, writes ICTJ's Aileen Thomson.

04/11/17

Activists: Strong Civil Society is Key to Hopes of Stability in Africa’s Great Lakes

A new ICTJ report argues that in Africa's interconnected Great Lakes region, each country’s attempt to provide justice for past violations offers lessons for similar processes in others. We gathered civil society activists from across the region to discuss which strategies have worked for them, which have not, and opened up about the greatest challenges they face in securing justice.

03/29/17

Public Hearings: Platforms of Truth, Dignity, and Catharsis

On the International Day for the Right to Truth we spotlight one of the most powerful ways truth commissions can reassert victims' dignity: public hearings. These open events can have a potentially cathartic power for victims and their families, but also the public at large by generating solidarity and empathy for the suffering of others in societies deeply polarized and traumatized by atrocities and denial.

03/24/17

Empowering Victims in Kenya on International Day for the Right to Truth

The right to the truth carries special resonance in Kenya, and so on March 24th Kenyan state agencies, survivors, civil society organizations, and international partners will join together in Nairobi to observe the International Day for the Right to the Truth. It provides an opportunity not just for remembrance, but also for greater dialogue between the government and victims about the implementation of reparations programs and of the findings presented in the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission's final report.

03/23/17

Tunisia's Truth and Dignity Commission Resumes Public Hearings - December 16

Following two days of historic public testimony last month, Tunisia 's Truth and Dignity Commission 's second set of public hearings continue. Watch the livesteam below and follow us on twitter at @theICTJ for live coverage.

12/16/16

“Learning Peace”: Groundbreaking New Book from ICTJ and UNICEF Stirs Debate on Education, Justice and Peacebuilding

A groundbreaking new book from the International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and UNICEF examines the complicated relationship between education, justice and peacebuilding in societies grappling with a legacy of violent conflict. It offers lessons on how education can be harnessed in a divided society to overcome the past and create the conditions for peace, often under very difficult circumstances.

11/29/16

Reconciliation in Myanmar Must Include Political Prisoners

Myanmar may have a new government under Aung San Suu Kyi, but former political prisoners continue to face challenges throughout the country. A new report sheds light on prisoners' challenges and recommends steps the government can take to offer redress.

06/07/16

ICTJ Conference Explores Efforts at Redress, Accountability and Reform in African Great Lakes Region

Today, ICTJ opened a two-day conference in Kampala, Uganda, gathering activists and officials from the African Great Lakes Region to discuss efforts at redress and accountability for serious human rights violations committed in their countries.

05/17/16

ICTJ Partners Victims, Civil Society and Officials on Transitional Justice in Great Lakes Region

Civil society leaders, members of victims' groups and state officials throughout the Great Lakes region will convene in Kampala, Uganda next week at a conference hosted by ICTJ. Attendees will share their experiences working for redress in their communities and discuss what strategies have proven effective at the local level.

05/12/16

Panel Discussion Examines the Impact of Denial

What happens when a state refuses to acknowledge the suffering of victims of mass atrocities? Or when the public celebrates perpetrators as heroes? Earlier this month, a panel discussion hosted by The International Center for Transitional Justice and New York University’s Center for Global Affairs grappled with the impact of denial on justice.

04/27/16

What is the Role of Truth Commissions in Peace Processes in Africa?

The African Union, the Kofi Annan Foundation and ICTJ opened a high-level conference examining the role of truth commissions in peace processes. The two-day conference, titled “Truth Commissions and Peace Processes in Africa,” has gathered senior staff from the African Union and member states as well as international and national experts to reflect on lessons learned from truth commissions that have emerged from peace processes in Africa and other continents.

04/18/16

Post-Karadzic Bosnia and Herzegovina: The End of the Criminal Justice Era

Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic was recently sentenced by the ICTY to 40 years for genocide and crimes against humanity, crimes which have decisively shaped the society in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In this essay, ICTJ’s Refik Hodzic explores what would it take for this poisonous legacy to be dismantled and makes a case for acknowledgement and reparations as matters of moral imperative, but also of political necessity.

04/11/16

Truth is the First Step Towards Peace

As we search for ways to halt the violence and foster lasting peace in societies grappling with a legacy of massive human rights abuse, there is arguably no more important day to reflect upon the importance of the struggle for truth and justice than today, March 24. Thus, we take a moment to mark the International Day for the Right to the Truth concerning Gross Human Rights Violations and for the Dignity of Victims.

03/24/16

ICTJ Paper Looks at Range of Options for Dealing with Myanmar’s Troubled Past

With hopes running high after the National League for Democracy’s landslide victory in November, a new ICTJ paper calls on the soon-to-be-established Burmese government to seriously consider taking steps to deal with Myanmar’s troubled past as a way to help end the cycle of violence and human rights violations in the conflict-torn country.

12/08/15

Opening Up Remedies in Myanmar

This briefing paper calls on the soon-to-be-established NLD-led Burmese government to seriously consider taking steps to deal with Myanmar’s troubled past as a way to help end the cycle of violence and human rights violations in the conflict-torn country.

12/09/15

by

Aileen Thomson

Kenyan Victims Demand National Assembly Adopt TJRC Report and Implement Recommendations

After years of waiting for the government to take action by implementing the recommendations of Kenya’s Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation Commission, victims of past human rights violations and mass violence are demanding that something be done.

12/04/15

Transforming Education, Transforming the Future

In this op-ed, ICTJ Vice President Paul Seils discusses how education can be used to address legacies of mass violence and dictatorship.

11/24/15

History Lessons Help Kenyan Youth See Their Role in Building a Thriving Democracy

Young people in Kenya now have a new tool to help them learn about difficult periods in Kenyan history and discuss justice, democracy, leadership, and their role as Kenyan citizens.

11/20/15

Learning From Our Past: An Exploration of Truth, Justice, and Reconciliation in Kenya

This educational tool for educators and mentors is designed to help teach young people in Kenya about difficult periods in Kenyan history and foster discussion on issues of justice, democracy, leadership, and their role as Kenyan citizens.

11/19/15

by

Karen Murphy, Dylan Wray, and Clara Ramírez-Barat

For Social Change to Take Root, Children Must be Involved in Truth-seeking

Children are particularly affected by conflict and mass atrocities and have a unique perspective on how those events impact their communities. This makes their participation in transitional justice processes essential for countries to genuinely make a break with the past and successfully address legacies of mass violence.

11/18/15

Young Activists in Bosnia Discuss Transitional Justice and Media at the Site of a Former Camp

For the last three years, a group of young activists gather on the night of the 5th of August at the site of Trnopolje camp, out in the open, to reenact the way prisoners spent their night and through dialogue explore alternative ways of dealing with the past.

08/06/15

Twenty Years Since Srebrenica: No Reconciliation, We’re Still at War

Bosnia and Herzegovina is marking the twentieth anniversary of the Srebrenica genocide. In this Op-Ed, ICTJ's Refik Hodzic asks, can we constructively talk about reconciliation in a country still gripped by war?

06/29/15

Kenyatta’s Apology Breaks Important Ground, Now Comprehensive Action Is Needed

In this op/ed, the head of ICTJ's Kenya Program, Christopher Gitari, argues that President Kenyatta's recent apology to victims—though commendable—must be supported by solid reforms and initiatives for rebuilding the lives of those who have suffered the most.

05/26/15

Overlooked and Invisible: The Women of Enforced Disappearances

70-94% of the victims of enforced disappearances are men. But what happens to the women left behind? ICTJ's Amrita Kapur explains why women are uniquely impacted by the crime, and how transitional justice can help.

04/14/15

More than prayers, Pope Francis’ actions can help reconciliation in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Ahead of Pope Francis' visit to Bosnia Herzegovina, ICTJ's Communications Director, Refik Hodzic, asks the leader of the Catholic Church to actively contribute to "a genuine reckoning needed for a genuine peace" in a society still stuck in the past, even 20 years after the war.

02/17/15

Documentary Film ‘Remember Me’ shows Effects of Disappearances in Bosnia and Herzegovina

A new short documentary film “Remember Me” tells a powerful story of two young women whose fathers were disappeared during the conflict in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

12/09/14

ICTJ Program Report: Kenya

Kenya continues to deal with the repercussions of violence stemming from its disputed 2007 presidential elections, when political protests and targeted ethnic violence rocked the country, leaving thousands dead and hundreds of thousands displaced. Head of our Kenya office Chris Gitari gives an update on how Kenya is moving forward, and explains ICTJ's work in the country.

11/03/14

Barcelona: ICTJ Trains Advocates from 18 Countries on Truth Commissions

Transitional justice practitioners and activists from 18 different countries gathered in Barcelona to attend the 6th Intensive Course on Truth Commissions, organized by the ICTJ and the Barcelona International Peace Resource Center on September 29 - October 3.

10/16/14

Continuing Abuses Threaten Myanmar’s Transition to Democracy and Peace, Says ICTJ Report

Continuing political repression, cronyism, and ongoing conflicts are disrupting attempts to put Myanmar on a linear path to democracy, peace, and development, says a new report from the ICTJ. According to the report, titled “Navigating Paths to Justice in Myanmar’s Transition,” dealing with current and historical abuses is essential to achieving genuine progress on peacebuilding and economic development in the country.

07/21/14

We work side by side with victims to obtain acknowledgment and redress for massive human rights violations, hold those responsible to account, reform and build democratic institutions, and prevent the recurrence of violence or repression.