Resource Library

Last week, police opened fire on unarmed protesters, killing three and injuring several others in Faraba Banta, a small town in southwestern Gambia. ICTJ condemns these acts and supports civil society and victims in their call for swift actions ensuring justice, reparations, and an independent investigation into the causes of the attacks.

For 21 years, the people of The Gambia lived under the dictatorship of military strongman Yahya Jammeh. Now, The Gambia is working to step up to the challenge of unpacking the past, building a brighter future, and ensuring that it never relapses into repression, violence, and exclusion. The ICTJ spoke with Dr. Baba Galleh Jallow and Musu Bakoto Sawo, the Executive Secretary and Deputy Executive Secretary of the TRRC, respectively, to hear their insights about their work and how the TRRC can build upon other efforts to put victims at the forefront of The Gambia’s transformation .

From October 1 to October 5, 2018, ICTJ hosted its eleventh intensive course on transitional justice in collaboration with the International Peace Center for in Barcelona. Participants included leaders in their respective fields, including human rights law, community justice and legal services, peacebuilding, education, and humanitarian affairs.

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.

Banjul, June 12, 2019—“Never Again!” sings Awa Bling in her recently released song produced with the support of ICTJ. She is part of a movement of youth and prominent artists who are reclaiming this universal slogan by creating their own songs about transitional justice and bringing their voices to some of the most forgotten regions of The Gambia. Local and international fans can now access new music videos released on social media by five talented Gambian hip hop artists.

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.

The Syrian Constitutional Committee has finally been agreed upon. The 150-member committee — made up of representatives of the Syrian regime, the opposition, and civil society members — is tasked with writing a new constitution for Syria. In an ideal world, this new constitution could be the first step to bringing an end to the deadly conflict that has left the country, and the lives of countless Syrian people, in ruins.

Banjul, The Gambia – On October 26, 2019, t he International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) in partnership with an artist collective in The Gambia will premier e a short documentary film about a group of young musicians and activists taking part in the country’s unfolding transitional justice process.

New York, December 4, 2019— "Get ready to speak up and be heard because your voice matters!”—that is the message a new guidebook released today on transitional justice sends to Syrian youth. Produced by ICTJ and Dawlaty, a Syrian human rights organization based in Beirut, the guidebook introduces the concepts of transitional justice to young audiences in an engaging and interactive way while capturing the challenges of applying them in difficult contexts.