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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.

Justice for the Disappeared is at the Heart of Transitional Justice

As the world marks August 30, the International Day of the Disappeared, we are reminded that forced disappearances and transitional justice share a common history. Indeed, processes working in concert that came to form the field of transitional justice were born from the search for truth and justice about the disappeared.

08/28/12

ICTJ Program Report: Middle East and North Africa

The latest ICTJ Program Report explores transitional justice issues in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and charts our work in this important and dynamic region. Claudio Cordone, ICTJ’s program director covering the MENA region, discusses individual country scenarios, prospects for transitional justice processes and explains ICTJ’s involvement and impact. Cordone speaks about transitional justice principles being at the root of popular uprisings referred to as “Arab Spring” and the challenges facing societies in their efforts to reckon with legacies of dictatorships and recent violence. He describes ICTJ’s efforts to address the impact of violence on women and promote their participation in transitional justice initiatives. The interview provides a thorough overview of ongoing initiatives and future prospects in Tunisia, Libya, Egypt, Syria, Yemen, Lebanon and Israel and Occupied Palestinian Territory.

09/05/12

Failing to Deal with the Past: What Cost to Lebanon?

This report examines the situation of impunity in Lebanon that has persisted since the 1975-1990 war through the lenses of core elements of transitional justice. It analyzes Lebanon’s past experience of ineffective transitional justice measures -- including limited domestic trials, na...

01/30/14

by

ICTJ

New ICTJ Study Highlights Consequences for Lebanon of Not Dealing with the Past

A culture of impunity for serious violations of human rights continues to thrive in Lebanon, says a report released today by ICTJ.

03/03/14

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

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

A Catalyst for Change: Engaging Youth in Transitional Justice

Although youth are key political and social stakeholders who have much to contribute to—and gain from—transitional justice processes, they often remain marginalized from such processes or are given only a limited and predetermined space in which to engage. In recent years, the peacebu...

04/23/18

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Virginie Ladisch

Committing to Justice for Serious Human Rights Violations: Lessons from Hybrid Tribunals

This report aims to help practitioners in the transitional justice field to understand the experience of establishing and operating hybrid courts and to address some common assumptions about these entities. To do so, it looks at hybrid or mixed courts in practice, drawing on experienc...

12/05/18

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Elena Naughton

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

In The Name of Loved Ones: Justice for the Missing and Disappeared

The trend of missing and disappeared persons due to conflict remains more prevalent than ever today. Many governments around the world have remained undeterred in their abuse of power to invade a home or community and remove persons deemed to be a threat. This intractable problem has received global attention largely due to the efforts of family members who often risk their lives in pursuit of the right to know and ‍‍to bury their loved ones.

08/28/19

Ready for Change: Lebanon’s Youth Rise Up

For over a month now, Lebanese people have been in the streets peacefully calling for an end to corruption, economic disenfranchisement, and government mismanagement, calling instead for accountability and reform of the systems that have allowed these things to occur. The protests are historic for several reasons: their scope and magnitude, as well as the way they have unified a country that has for so long had division baked into nearly every aspect of life, down to its system of governance.

12/03/19

Will the ‘October Revolution’ Finally Bring Lebanon to a Reckoning with Its Past?

Lebanon’s ongoing “October Revolution” represents the largest decentralized, anti-government protest the country has seen at least since the end of the civil war in 1990. The demonstrations have brought thousands of Lebanese to the streets to condemn widespread corruption among the political class, paralyzing the country for weeks.

12/16/19

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Nour El Bejjani Noureddine

In Lebanon, Students Grapple with the Truth About Their Country's Painful Past

ICTJ held a two-day workshop on transitional justice for a group of university students in Beirut on February 14 and 15 as part of its ongoing support to the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon. The students are currently serving as volunteers on a project to create an archive of the committee’s decades-long struggle and activism.

03/24/20

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Firas BouZeineddine

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

A Step Closer to Uncovering the Fate of Loved Ones: Lebanon Forms a Commission for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared

Beirut, June 23, 2020 — Almost a year and a half after passing Law 105 for the missing and disappeared, the Lebanese government has finally appointed the members of the National Commission for the Missing and Forcibly Disappeared. ICTJ welcomes this action, which is another step closer to uncovering the fate of thousands of victims. However, the appointment of the commissioners will be meaningless, unless the government demonstrates greater commitment to addressing the families’ right to the truth and takes the necessary action to create a commission that is credible and effective.

06/23/20

Justice Served? The Special Tribunal for Lebanon Renders Its Long-Anticipated Judgment

On August 18, nearly two decades after Lebanon’s former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri was brutally assassinated in a car bombing, the Special Tribunal for Lebanon delivered a long-awaited conviction. The judgment found Salim Ayyash guilty of conspiracy to commit a terrorist act, committing a terrorist act, the intentional homicide of Hariri and 21 others, and attempted homicide of the 226 injured. However, the tribunal did not find enough evidence that the three other defendants were aware in advance of the conspiracy and thus acquitted them of all charges. This split verdict makes an uncertain situation in Lebanon even more tenuous.

08/20/20

ICTJ Joins with 14 Prominent NGOs to Demand Accountability and a Non-Sectarian Political System in Lebanon

In response to the recent tragic explosion in Beirut on August 4, 2020, ICTJ and 14 prominent nongovernmental organizations recently issued a joint statement, demanding immediate action to promote accountability and a new non-sectarian political system in Lebanon. The likely preventable explosion represents another appalling consequence of a dysfunctional sectarian political system that has been in place since the end of the country’s 15-yearlong civil war in 1990 and that has afforded impunity to perpetrators of human rights abuses for decades and entrenched a culture of cronyism and corruption in the country.

10/20/20

Dead at the Root: Systemic Dysfunction and the Failure of Reform in Lebanon

Lebanon has long been afflicted by a combination of political deadlock and a lack of accountability that has resulted in ongoing human rights violations and overall systemic rot. Comprehensive reforms, along with an inclusive truth-seeking process, broad public dialogue, and other way...

12/18/20

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Nour El Bejjani Noureddine and Anna Myriam Roccatello

ICTJ Bids Adieu to Lokman Slim, Fearless Lebanese Activist and Intellectual

On February 4, 2021, the prominent activist, intellectual, writer, and filmmaker Lokman Slim joined the long list of victims of violence and impunity in Lebanon. The courageous human rights and political activist was found shot to death in his car in southern Lebanon.

02/05/21

Amidst Chaos and Despair: Lebanese Youth Explore Transitional Justice

As part of its ongoing support of the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon, ICTJ organized a three-day virtual workshop on transitional justice for university students on July 12-14, 2021. The students all served as volunteers on a project to establish an archive of the committee’s work and activism over the past four decades and participated in a previous workshop in February 2020 that introduced them to transitional justice concepts.

09/20/21

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Firas BouZeineddine

Accountability in Policing COVID-19: Lessons from the Field

The global COVID-19 pandemic forced many countries to impose emergency measures, such as curfews and community lockdowns, to stem the spread of the virus. To enforce these measures, some societies have given regular police forces increased power to enforce the measures, while others h...

09/28/21

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Anna Myriam Roccatello and Mohamed Suma

ICTJ Art Contest Invites Artists to Reflect on Dissent in Lebanon and Tunisia

New York, January 18, 2022— The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) is pleased to announce the “Wide Awake Art Contest,” an open call to Lebanese and Tunisian artists as well as artists living in Lebanon or Tunisia to explore the theme “the Sound of Dissent.” The contest will showcase works by those who are documenting and memorializing their communities’ stories in times of instability, resistance, and change.

01/18/22

Catalyzing Transformative Change: The Power of Art and Culture to Inspire Action

For many years now, the International Center for Transitional Justice and other organizations have supported young activists and artists as they harness the power of art, culture, and new media to advance truth, justice, reform, and redress, not only where they live, but across borders and in collaboration with others. This innovative and inspiring work offers lessons about how to increase civic engagement and help societies know the truth about their country’s past and actively shape the national narrative.

07/05/22

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Nour El Bejjani Noureddine

Wide Awake - Jacques Vartabedian - Push

In a New Book, Women Relatives of the Missing in Lebanon Use the ‘Ink of Their Hearts’ to Tell Their Stories

The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and the Committee of the Families of the Kidnapped and Disappeared in Lebanon (CFKDL) will release Windmills of Our Hearts , a new book of short stories by 15 women relatives of missing and forcibly disappeared persons in Lebanon. On June 1, ICTJ and CFKDL will host a public launch and book signing event at Dar el Wardieh in Hamra, Beirut.

05/24/23

Windmills of Our Hearts - High Res Print Visual

ICTJ Writing Contest Invites Young Migrants to Share Their Stories

ICTJ is pleased to announce the “Overseas: Writing Contest,” an open call for young migrants originally from or currently residing in Lebanon, Libya, or Tunisia to share their personal experiences of migration in the form of a short, written testimony.

09/18/23

ICTJ Announces the Winners of the ‘Overseas’ Writing Contest

ICTJ is pleased to announce the winners of its “Overseas” writing contest. In it, young people originally from or currently residing in Lebanon, Libya, or Tunisia who have left their home countries for political or socioeconomic reasons were asked to share their personal experiences of migration in the form of a short, written testimony.

01/25/24

A drawing featuting a young trekking through a rugged landscape, his back facing toward the viewer. On his back, he carries a small castle.

Justice and Development: Nexus at the Heart of Arab Spring

This year’s Annual Emilio Mignone Lecture on Transitional Justice, coordinated by ICTJ and the Center for Human Rights and Global Justice at the NYU School of Law, focused on the intersection between transitional justice and international development.

11/17/11

Tunisia Leads the Way in Transitional Justice

The National Conference to Launch a Dialogue on Transitional Justice in Tunisia was held on Saturday, April 14 in Tunis, initiating a process which should result in the adoption of a comprehensive law on transitional justice by the country’s National Constituent Assembly. ICTJ president David Tolbert delivered a keynote address.

04/16/12

Breaking the Ground on Peace and Stability: Transitional Justice and the Rule of Law

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.

05/15/12

ICTJ signs cooperation agreement with Tunisian Ministry of Human Rights and Transitional Justice

The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) signed a cooperation agreement with the Tunisian government on January 16 to provide further technical assistance in establishing transitional justice mechanisms in the country. The development comes two years after protests forced President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali to step down and flee the country in January 2011.

01/17/13

Three Years Since Revolution, Tunisia Seeks to Reckon With Difficult Past

Marking three years since Tunisia's revolution, ICTJ President David Tolbert argues that transitional justice developments in the country are not only worthy of attention, but serve as useful markers for transitions in the region and beyond.

01/14/14

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

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

Nobel Peace Prize Recognizes Key Role of Tunisia’s Civil Society in Country’s Transition

ICTJ welcomes the award of the 2015 Nobel Peace Prize to Tunisia's National Dialogue Quartet for helping the country transition to democracy. With the award, the Nobel committee acknowledges the "decisive contribution" made by the group of civil society organizations after Tunisia’s 2011 revolution.

10/09/15

Tunisia: Uphold Rights While Fighting Terrorism

ICTJ joins groups calling for an anti-terrorism approach that respects citizens' rights in Tunisia. “Institutional reform can be a strong tool to prevent recurrence of human rights abuses and build a strong and credible democracy in Tunisia," said Salwa El Gantri, ICTJ Head of Office in Tunisia. "The current transitional justice process aims to shed light on similar violations that took place under the dictatorship, and we don’t want them to be committed again under the ‘fight against terrorism’ slogan.”

04/28/16

Tunisia's Proposed "Reconciliation Law" Would Grant Amnesty for Corruption, Fail to Grow the Economy

The Tunisian government reintroduced a bill that, if passed, would grant a path for reconciliation to corrupt business people and Ben Ali-era officials. They claim it will stimulate the economy, but economics professor Dr. Abdeljelil Bédoui explains why this law is not the solution.

07/21/16

Tunisian Activists Oppose Law That Would Grant Amnesty to Corruption

Tunisian activists have taken to the streets this month to protest the proposed Economic Reconciliation Law recently revived in parliament. If approved, the bill would offer a path for corrupt Ben Ali-era officials and business people to legalize their stolen assets and secure a form of amnesty.

07/22/16

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

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

“Left Behind”: Young Photographers Capture Marginalization in Tunisia

Ongoing economic and social inequality, a legacy of the dictatorship, affects Tunisians across generations, but has particularly pronounced impacts on young people. ICTJ worked with four young photographers to confront the consequences of marginalization and explore its impacts on Tunisian youth. Their four photo galleries comprise the exhibition "Marginalization in Tunisia: Images of an Invisible Repression.”

05/24/17

ICTJ Denounces the Passage of Tunisia’s New ‘Administrative Reconciliation’ Law that Grants Amnesties to Public Officials for Corruption

The International Center for Transitional Justice denounces the passage of Tunisia ’s deeply flawed “Administrative Reconciliation” law, which grants amnesty to public officials who were involved in corruption during the dictatorship but who claim they did not personally gain from it.

09/14/17

Statement on the Tunisia Law 53-2013

On Friday, the United Nations hailed the progress made since 2014 in Tunisia in terms of transitional justice, underlining the importance of “enabling the transitional justice process to achieve its objectives." "The United Nations Resident Coordinator in Tunis, Diego Zorilla, congratulates all...

03/26/18

ICTJ and Victims’ Coalition for Dignity and Rehabilitation Urge Extension of Truth Commission’s Work

Members of parliament from political parties opposed to extending the work of Tunisia’s truth commission today voted to end the commission’s mandate. This came after parliamentarians from parties that support the extension walked out of the proceedings because their position is that the Organic Law that created the Truth and Dignity Commission (TDC or Instance Vérité et Dignité in French) authorized the TDC to extend its mandate. Earlier, the TDC had voted to extend its mandate by a year in order to complete its work. In a position paper distributed to members of parliament and civil society activists, ICTJ and the Victims’ Coalition for Dignity and Rehabilitation jointly said that they supported the extension of the TDC’s mandate, despite internal issues among its commissioners. ICTJ pointed out that other truth commissions elsewhere have sought and been given extensions in order to carry out key parts of their work, such as public hearings, or to complete writing their reports. Both ICTJ and the Victims’ Coalition said that an extension would allow the TDC to hold public hearings on marginalization and unemployment – which was one of the grievances that drove the Arab Spring in Tunisia. It would also give the Commission time to finalize its report and recommendations, including those on reparations.

03/26/18

Transitional Justice in Tunisia: Tension Between the Need for Accountability and Due Process Rights

Pursuing justice in a transitional context may take the form of multiple measures and goes beyond the pursuit of criminal prosecutions. Tunisia’s Basic Law on Transitional Law, adopted in December 2013, is a case in point. Despite its flaws, the the law introduced a fairly comprehensi...

05/04/18

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Howard Varney and Katarzyna Zduńczyk

The Role of Victims in Criminal Proceedings

This briefing paper focuses on the role of victims of human rights violations in criminal proceedings. This paper will provide examples of recent developments in the advancement of victim participation in criminal proceedings in international criminal law and domestic jurisdictions. ...

05/04/18

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Howard Varney and Katarzyna Zduńczyk

Conference Explores Uncertain Path Forward for Tunisia’s Specialized Criminal Chambers

TUNIS—ICTJ hosted a conference on May 2 and 3 to address the current challenges facing Tunisia’s Specialized Criminal Chambers (SCC) as it proceeds to adjudicate cases of serious human rights violations committed under the former regime. The 90 guests who attended included members of Tunisia’s Truth...

05/10/18

Revitalizing Justice: A Cross-Cultural Conversation with Two Youth Activists

ICTJ's Virginie Ladisch spoke with Heythem Guesmi, a young Tunisian activist who is fighting systemic oppression, economic exclusion, and impunity that persist despite the Revolution’s initial success, and Thenjiwe McHarris, a young organizer working with Black Lives Matter in the United States—a movement whose urgency also stems from historic marginalization leading to widespread impunity and systematic failures in law enforcement.

05/14/18

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Virginie Ladisch

Tunisia's Truth and Dignity Commission Winds Down, ICTJ Experts Reflect on Impact

As the work of Tunisia's Truth and Dignity Commission winds down, ICTJ's Salwa El Gantri and Kelli Muddell discuss some of the challenges and successes of its work and their vision for transparent, participatory processes to advance Tunisia’s transitional justice mandate in the short and long term.

12/20/18

An Unfinished Revolution: Tackling Corruption in Tunisia

Tunis—Youth activists from across Tunisia, representatives of state institutions, and experts from international nongovernmental organizations gathered on July 10, 2019, to discuss challenges to pursuing accountability for corruption crimes committed during the Ben Ali dictatorship and practical steps that civil society and government can take to overcome these challenges.

07/25/19

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Christopher Boland

‘The Bird Will Not Return to the Cage:’ An Analysis of Tunisia’s 2019 Elections

Recently, Tunisia held its third parliamentary elections since the revolution and the second presidential elections since late President Béji Caid Essebssi passed away on July 25, 2019. It remains to be seen if the election’s results will usher in a new era of dignity, for which Tunisians took the streets in 2010 and 2011.

10/25/19

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Salwa El Gantri

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.