219 results

Forms of Justice: A Guide to Designing Reparations Application Forms and Registration Processes for Victims of Human Rights Violations

In a number of countries around the world, governments have created state-administered reparations programs for victims and communities that were most affected by massive human rights violations. The success of these programs, which often involve thousands of individuals, depends in p...

by

Ruben Carranza, Cristián Correa, and Elena Naughton

Report

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
In Focus

New ICTJ Study: Syrian Refugees in Lebanon See Security, Restoration of Dignity as Key Conditions for Return

A new ICTJ report argues that discussions about a future return of refugees and coexistence among groups currently at war in Syria must begin now, even in the face of ongoing violence and displacement.

06/11/17
Press Releases

Not Without Dignity: Views of Syrian Refugees in Lebanon on Displacement, Conditions of Return, and Coexistence

Discussions about a future return of refugees and coexistence among groups currently at war in Syria must begin now, even in the face of ongoing violence and displacement. This report, based on interviews with refugees, makes it clear that the restoration of dignity will be important ...

by

Rim El Gantri and Karim El Mufti

Report

New Book from ICTJ Examines How Transitional Justice Must Adapt to Difficult Circumstances in Today’s World

A new book by ICTJ titled Justice Mosaics: How Context Shapes Transitional Justice in Fractured Societies examines the challenges of responding to massive human rights violations in different and difficult circumstances in today's world.

05/16/17
Press Releases

Justice Mosaics: How Context Shapes Transitional Justice in Fractured Societies - Report

This report presents the main findings of a multiyear research project conducted by the International Center for Transitional Justice on the challenges and opportunities of responding to serious and massive human rights violations in different contexts. The project commissioned 21 stu...

by

Roger Duthie

Report

Justice Mosaics: How Context Shapes Transitional Justice in Fractured Societies

What hope is there for justice for victims of atrocities in profoundly fractured societies, where systems of government have broken down and social and political divisions run deep? What is the role of transitional justice in forging peace in countries like Colombia, after decades of ...

by

Roger Duthie and Paul Seils

Book

ICTJ Calls Again for Withdrawal of Flawed “Economic Reconciliation” Draft Law in Tunisia

The International Center for Transitional Justice today repeated the call for the withdrawal of the revamped “Economic Reconciliation” Draft Law. As one of the key expert organizations that has supported the transitional process in Tunisia since its inception, ICTJ has opposed the flawed “Economic Reconciliation” Draft Law since it was first presented in 2015, because its provisions undermine key goals of transitional justice: accountability, truth and reform.

05/12/17
Press Releases

Laundering the Corrupt Is a National Priority? Tunisian Civil Society Again Opposes the National Reconciliation Law

This is the third time that the Tunisian government, supported by several Members of Parliament, has put debate of the National Reconciliation Law on the political agenda. Rearranged in form but with the same substantial faults, this law has mobilized the opposition — for the third time — of approximately 20 civil society organizations that met yesterday and plan to soon hold a press conference.

04/25/17
Press Releases

Writing the Unvoiced: Tunisian Women Break the Silence About Repression

The impact of Tunisia's transitional justice process is rooted in its ability to give voice to diverse segments of the population, including historically marginalized communities. A workshop hosted by ICTJ brought generations of women together to explore truth-telling techniques and create space for all voices.

04/17/17
In Focus

Men and Boys Are Victims Of Sexual Violence, Too

The taboo around sexual violence against men and boys can leave victims in the shadows, write ICTJ's Kelli Muddell and Sibley Hawkins. Without acknowledgment of these crimes, efforts to address injustices of the past will be hard-pressed to develop inclusive and effective responses.

03/27/17
In Focus

LIVE: Tunisia Public Hearings Resume with Focus on Women

At 3 pm, Eastern Time, Tunisia's Truth and Dignity Commission is scheduled to resume its public hearings with a session focusing on violations against women. Watch the livesteam below and follow us on twitter at @theICTJ for live coverage.

03/10/17
In Focus

As Tunisia Confronts Truth About Abuses, ICTJ Gathers Officials to Discuss Criminal Justice

In Tunisia, efforts to seek criminal accountability have been characterized by an absence of strategy and the lack of political will. An ICTJ conference sought to address these issues and ease the confusion and political gridlock surrounding the Specialized Judicial Chambers.

01/19/17
In Focus

ICTJ at 15: A Word from President David Tolbert

Join President David Tolbert as we celebrate ICTJ at 15 years, during which there have been many pivotal moments, both for our organization and the struggle for justice globally.

12/15/16
In Focus

When No One Calls It Rape: Sexual Violence Against Men and Boys

Sexual violence against men and boys is alarmingly common amidst conflict or repression, but these crimes are often mishandled. A new ICTJ report examines how transitional justice efforts in South Africa, Kenya, Cambodia, and beyond have responded to the needs of male victims of sexual violence. What lessons can be drawn from these approaches?

12/07/16
In Focus

When No One Calls It Rape: Addressing Sexual Violence Against Men and Boys

Sexual violence against men and boys in times of conflict or repression is alarmingly common— and takes a markedly consistent form across contexts in terms of how it affects victims and societies as a human rights violation that is taboo to talk about. It has been committed in all cul...

by

Amrita Kapur and Kelli Muddell

Report

Helping Victims Overcome Human Rights Violations Through Education

Understanding education as a form of both reconstruction and reparations is essential for societies in their efforts to address victims’ rights and help victims and their families overcome the consequences of a painful past.

07/27/16
In Focus

Barcelona Course Examines a Responsive Approach to Justice and Peacebuilding

This summer, our Intensive Course on Transitional Justice and Peace Processes brought experts from around the world together in Barcelona to examine how transitional mechanisms can be integrated into peace negotiations. Read about the course and watch interviews with our experts.

07/26/16
In Focus

Handbook on Complementarity: An Introduction to the Role of National Courts and the ICC in Prosecuting International Crimes

Where should justice for some of the world’s worst crimes be done? In national courts or at the International Criminal Court in The Hague? Our Handbook on Complementarity explores those questions, laying out the interconnected relationship between the ICC and national court systems in...

by

Paul Seils

Book

New Handbook from ICTJ Explains the Most Important Concept Behind the ICC

A new handbook written by ICTJ vice president Paul Seils explores the relationship between the ICC and national courts.

07/19/16
Press Releases

Quiz: How Much Do You Know About Complementarity?

Think you're an expert on how national courts and the ICC work together? Put your knowledge to the test!

07/14/16
In Focus

Unpacking the Nuances of Complementarity

The struggle against impunity remains as important –and precarious –as ever as we celebrate International Justice Day on July 17. ICTJ marks the occasion with a look at complementarity, a concept critical to understanding the role that the ICC and national courts play in this struggle.

07/12/16
In Focus

Our Voices Will Not be Silenced: Charting Women's Struggle for Justice in Tunisia

The voices of Tunisian women were in danger of being lost in the country's transitional process. Salwa El Gantri explains how one network of women's organizations made sure that did not happen by helping women find their voice and fight for justice.

06/21/16

by

Salwa El Gantri

In Focus

“It Was a Way to Destroy Our Lives:” Tunisian Women Speak Out on Religious Discrimination

For decades, veiled women in Tunisia were deprived of their rights and discriminated against because of their religious beliefs. Now, they’re joining together to tell their stories and seek justice from the Tunisian government.

06/14/16
In Focus

ICTJ Condemns Egypt’s Continued Crackdown Against Human Rights Activists

The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) condemns in the strongest terms the Egyptian government’s crackdown against human rights activists and calls on it to halt its ongoing investigation of independent human rights organizations in relation to the legitimate exercise of their activities and to close Case No. 173 (the “NGO foreign funding” case) once and for all.

03/28/16
Press Releases

Negotiating Peace and Justice: A Course on the Place of Transitional Justice in Peace Processes

The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and the Barcelona International Peace Resource Center (BIPRC) are pleased to announce an Intensive Course on Transitional Justice and Peace Processes, taking place in Barcelona, Spain, June 6 - 10, 2016. It will focus on practical examples of recent or paradigmatic peace processes where the question of justice formed a significant part of the negotiating context.

03/10/16
In Focus

“Only Truth Could Heal This Pain”: Algerian Women Speak of Their Search for the Disappeared

For more than two decades, some 40 women have been protesting every Wednesday against government inaction on the disappeared in front of Algeria’s official human rights commission. They stand on the sidewalk holding photos of their disappeared relatives — their children, fathers, and husbands — breaking the silence at a dangerous time in Algeria.

03/08/16
In Focus

Morocco Still a Model for Justice in MENA, but Questions Remain

The month of January has a particular significance in the Middle East and North Africa. It was the month when the Arab uprisings were sparked five years ago. It was also the month when the transitional justice process was inaugurated in Morocco, 12 years ago. What can be learned from Morocco’s experience?

02/08/16
In Focus

In the Shadows of the Nobel Prize - Impunity Still a Threat to Tunisia’s Transition

In this op-ed, Rim El Gantri, head of ICTJ's Tunisian office, discusses the challenges facing Tunisia's transitional justice process and argues that the government's failure to provide accountability for crimes committed under past regimes threatens the country's transition to democracy.

10/16/15
In Focus

ICTJ Paper Highlights Progress and Challenges So Far in Tunisia’s Transition

Tunisia continues to take steps to fulfill its commitments under its ground-breaking Transitional Justice Law and realize the goals of the 2011 revolution. But a rocky start to the country’s new truth commission and proposed reconciliation-cum-amnesty legislation could undermine these efforts, according to a new paper by ICTJ.

09/29/15
Press Releases

State Repression and Polarized Politics Thwart Hopes for Justice in Egypt

After toppling Hosni Mubarak’s dictatorship in February 2011, Egyptians were eager for a reckoning with past injustices. But after years of political turmoil, the possibility of a genuine transitional justice process in Egypt is uncertain. We turned to three leading Egyptian activists to examine if there really is a chance for justice and reform in Egypt in the near future.

09/28/15
In Focus

Tunisia in Transition: One Year After the Creation of the Truth and Dignity Commission

This briefing paper details and analyzes the progress made so far in Tunisia to implement its historic Transitional Justice Law, with a particular focus on the Truth and Dignity Commission, created one year ago.

by

Reem El Gantri

Briefing Paper

Tunisia's "Reconciliation Bill" Threatens Gains of the Revolution

In this op-ed, ICTJ's President David Tolbert expresses concern about the new "Reconciliation Bill" proposed by the Tunisian government, which would grant amnesty to corrupt business people and Ben Ali-era officials in the guise of "reconciliation." "Massive corruption and violent human rights violations are mutually reinforcing, and unless this linkage is exposed and broken, it can lead to mutually reinforcing impunity," writes Tolbert.

08/17/15
In Focus

As Tunisia Prepares to Hear Nation’s Truth, New Alliances Amplify Women’s Voices

As Tunisia’s Truth and Dignity Commission (TDC) prepares to hear the testimonies of thousands of citizens, ICTJ is assisting women’s groups in ensuring that their voices are heard in the process.

05/21/15
In Focus

A Measure of Dignity: The Beginning of Reparations in Post-Revolution Tunisia

In this analysis piece, director of ICTJ's Reparative Justice program Ruben Carranza talks about the challenges Tunisia is facing in implementing individual and collective reparations measures since the fall of the Ben Ali dictatorship.

05/07/15
In Focus

Lebanon: Decades After the War, Wives of the Disappeared Are Reminders of an Unresolved Past

The wives of the missing and disappeared in Lebanon continue to suffer serious social, psychological, legal and financial effects on their lives, and the lives of their children, says a new report by ICTJ and the Institute for Women’s Studies in the Arab World at Lebanese American University.

04/20/15
Press Releases

Governments Overlook Lasting Impacts of Enforced Disappearance on Women

A major new report from ICTJ canvasses 31 countries to see how the crime of enforced disappearance affects women, as both the disappeared and the female relatives of the disappeared. It finds that across cultures, women face serious barriers to seeking relief due to discriminatory laws and practices.

03/16/15
Press Releases

Living with the Shadows of the Past: The Impact of Disappearance on Wives of the Missing in Lebanon

This report examines the impact on women of enforced disappearances committed during Lebanon’s civil war, focusing in particular on the effects on wives of the missing or disappeared—and their children. The research is based on interviews conducted by ICTJ with 23 wives of missing or ...

by

Christalla Yakinthou

Report

ICTJ Announces Online Debate: Is the International Community Abandoning the Fight Against Impunity?

ICTJ hosts human rights scholar Michael Ignatieff and UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein for an online debate whether the international community is abandoning the fight against impunity.

01/30/15
In Focus

Confronting the Legacy of Political Violence in Lebanon: An Agenda for Change

Lebanon should take firm steps to provide redress to victims of past conflicts and help prevent future violence, ICTJ and Lebanese rights groups said today at a roundtable discussion in Beirut. Lebanese authorities have mostly failed in their responsibility to end ongoing violations and ensure justice and truth for victims of the 1975-1990 war and successive conflicts.

10/20/14
Press Releases

Tunisia’s Specialized Judicial Chambers: Q&A with Judge Walid Melki

In this interview, Judge Walid Melki explains how Tunisia's Specialized Judicial Chambers will investigate and prosecute serious human rights violations.

09/02/14
In Focus

Making Justice a Reality Where It Counts

In this op-ed, ICTJ Vice President Paul Seils argues that the front line of justice must always be national courts and justice systems. "Citizens must see social institutions at work in their home countries, as it is there that courts can repudiate wrongdoing and reaffirm the most fundamental elements of the contract that binds a society together. It is there that having the dignity of a citizen can have its fullest meaning," writes Seils on International Justice Day.

07/18/14
In Focus

ICTJ Program Report: Tunisia

Since the uprising that sparked the "Arab Spring," Tunisians have demonstrated unwavering commitment to transitional justice. In this interview, ICTJ's Head of Office Rim El Gantri gives an overview of the country's efforts to address the truth about the past, seek justice for abuses committed under decades of repression, and provide reparations for harm suffered under the former regime.

06/03/14
In Focus

ICTJ to Take Part in Eighth Al Jazeera Forum: “Change in the Arab World: Where To?”

ICTJ President David Tolbert will be a featured speaker at this year’s Al Jazeera Forum in Doha, Qatar. Al Jazeera Forum is the flagship event of Al Jazeera Media Network, at which Al Jazeera showcases its contribution to the world of media and politics.

05/21/14
In Focus

In Wake of Dictatorship, Civil Society in Tunisia Prepares to Help Women Speak Their Truth

After emerging from its revolution with a new constitution and a comprehensive transitional justice law, Tunisia is setting into motion a process to learn the truth about the country’s time under repressive rule.

05/13/14
In Focus

Transition in Tunisia: The Role of the Media

In the span of only one month, Tunisia has witnessed the historic passing of a transitional justice law and adoption of a new constitution. A key actor in the country's transition is the media.

03/27/14
In Focus

ICTJ Expresses Deep Concern Over Egypt Death Sentences

ICTJ has expressed deep concern over the criminal proceedings that resulted in the imposition of death sentences on 529 supporters of former President Mohamed Morsi in Egypt on Monday. The verdict, announced by a criminal court in Minya, came after a trial that lasted less than an hour, according to news reports.

03/27/14
Press Releases

Transitional Justice and Women’s Rights: Four Countries to Watch This Year

To mark International Women’s Day, we invite you to read about four countries at the top of our gender justice priorities in the coming year, each with its own history, context, and complex sets of challenges.

03/05/14
In Focus

ICTJ Mourns the Death of Guatemalan Supreme Court Justice Cesar Barrientos

ICTJ is deeply saddened by the death of Guatemalan Supreme Court Justice Doctor Cesar Barrientos Pellecer, this past March 2. Guatemala has lost one of its greatest crusaders against impunity in the country.

03/05/14
In Focus

Lebanon: The Cost of Impunity

For decades, Lebanese governments have made only partial and ineffective attempts to hold powerful individuals, groups, and foreign states accountable for violations committed on Lebanese soil, including against civilians. The consequences of their failure to act – for victims and Lebanese society – are grave. ICTJ's new report looks at the culture of impunity for serious violations of human rights continues to thrive in Lebanon.

03/03/14
In Focus