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‘The Search for People’s Well-Being’: Mainstreaming a Psychosocial Approach to Transitional Justice

The field of transitional justice is increasingly recognizing the relevance of mental health and psychosocial support (MHPSS) in contexts of massive human rights violations. Despite growing advocacy and awareness at the global policy level, however, the field lacks a systematic approa...

09/19/24

Virginie Ladisch and Shayna Lewis

an image of colorful painting featuring a young girl

Report

A Cross-Country Caravan Inspires Gambian Youth to Take a Lead on the Path to Justice and Reconciliation

Almost eight years since The Gambia's former President Yahya Jammeh left power, the country is still seeking justice for the human rights abuses committed during his 22-year dictatorship. In May 2023, the Ministry of Justice released a plan to implement the recommendations of the country's Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission. While the plan promises to deliver justice and repair harms, for it to have its intended impact, it requires broad public participation in the process, especially that of young people. With that in mind, ICTJ has partnered with the UN Peacebuilding Fund on a project to encourage Gambian youth to take a leading role in this process and the country's future.

08/20/24

by Patience Mama Loum

Seven young Gambian women smile for a photo

In Focus

AU and EU Convene Experts to Consider the Transformative Impact of Transitional Justice in Africa and Europe

On June 5 and 6, 2024, the African Union (AU) and the European Union (EU) hosted the fourth edition of the AU-EU Experts’ Seminar on Transitional Justice in Brussels, Belgium. The consortium implementing the Initiative for Transitional Justice in Africa, led by ICTJ, helped organize the event. The seminar explored how transitional processes can transform individual lives, societal relations, and dysfunctional state institutions.

06/20/24

A group of people stand behind a long conference table and pose for a photo.

In Focus

‘We Must Resist, Persist, and Never Desist’—Colombian and African Civil Society Exchange Local Strategies for Promoting Reparations

On November 28, 2023, ICTJ organized an international dialogue in Bogotá, Colombia, to share innovative strategies for advancing victims’ rights to redress for human rights abuses and for establishing more victim-centered development policies. The gathering also marked the official launch of ICTJ’s new report—Advancing Victims’ Rights and Rebuilding Just Communities Local Strategies for Achieving Reparation as a Part of Sustainable Development—which presents findings from a two-year comparative study of local efforts in Colombia, The Gambia, Tunisia, and Uganda to advance reparations.

02/15/24

Two women seated indoors look intently ahead of them.

In Focus

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.

Press Release

2023 Year in Review

Throughout 2023, ICTJ’s experts have offered their unique perspective on breaking news around the globe as part of the World Report. Their insightful commentaries have brought into focus the impact these events have on victims of human right violations as well as larger struggles for peace and justice. In this edition, we look back on the past year through the Expert’s Choice column.

01/05/24

A collage of feature images from the 2023 Expert's Choice commentaries.

The Initiative for Transitional Justice in Africa Promises to Invigorate Efforts for Peace and Justice on the Continent

On October 25, the African Union (AU) and European Union officially launched their joint Initiative for Transitional Justice in Africa (ITJA) in Addis Ababa. The project will take place over a three-year period and will promote national transitional justice processes in Africa, in line with the AU Transitional Justice Policy and its roadmap. The ITJA has several unique features that, if embraced and advanced by all actors, have the potential to trailblaze a new and inspiring path to peace, justice, and sustainable development on the African continent.

12/01/23

Santa Falasca

Three women sit side by side at large desk on a podium facing toward an audience.

Opinion

Advancing Victims’ Rights and Rebuilding Just Communities: Local Strategies for Achieving Reparation as a Part of Sustainable Development

This comparative study examines strategies used by local actors to help operationalize reparations for victims of widespread human rights violations, while highlighting the synergies between these efforts and sustainable development. It is based on the fieldwork of ICTJ and its partne...

11/28/23

A women in colorful African dress holds a megaphone to her mouth

Report

International Conference in Bogotá and New ICTJ Report Explore Local Strategies for Advancing Reparation as Part of Sustainable Development

On November 28, ICTJ hosted an international conference to explore the synergies between reparations and sustainable development in Bogotá, Colombia. The event, titled “Advancing Victims’ Rights and Rebuilding Just Communities: An International Dialogue on Reparations and Sustainable Development,” brought together ICTJ partners from The Gambia, Tunisia, and Uganda along with civil society and government representatives from Colombia to discuss local strategies for advancing reparations for human rights abuses and how repairing victims and affected communities can contribute to local and national development. On the occasion, ICTJ also launched a new research report on the topic.

11/23/23

Several women in colorful traditional Gambian attire stand outside in the daylight, a couple of them holding megaphones

Press Release

AU and EU Launch Joint Initiative to Foster Implementation of Africa’s Continental Transitional Justice Policy Through ICTJ-Led Consortium

The African Union and the European Union have officially launched a three-year project to support AU member states as they incorporate the African Union Transitional Justice Policy and undertake transitional justice processes at the national level. The project, named the Initiative for Transitional Justice in Africa, will be implemented by a consortium of three organizations led by the International Center for Transitional Justice, the African Transitional Justice Legacy Fund, and the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation.

10/25/23

Two mean standing at a podium shake hands.

Press Release

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

Press Release

Achieving Justice One Beat at a Time: An ICTJ-Led Hip Hop Initiative Takes Center Stage

This year marks the 50th anniversary of the hip hop movement. To honor its contributions to the struggle for justice, truth, and equality, the Skoll Foundation hosted a panel discussion and concert event featuring hip hop artists, including cofounder of the legendary rap group Run-DMC Darryl McDaniels and Colombian rapper and producer Ali aka Mind, as part of its 20th World Forum held in April in Oxford, United Kingdom. ICTJ, which received the Skoll Award for Social Innovation in 2009 and has partnered with the Skoll Foundation since, invited Ali aka Mind as a representative of Rexistencia Hip Hop, an artistic mentorship and creation lab led by ICTJ’s office in Colombia and the Latin American media outlet and foundation Cartel Urbano.

05/18/23

In Focus

Welcome to the New ICTJ.org

In a fast-changing world, ICTJ regularly reexamines and adapts its methodology to develop innovative solutions to emerging problems, advance its mission, and achieve justice for victims of human rights violations. In that spirit, ICTJ recently launched an exciting new website and newsletter design. After over a year of research, planning, surveying stakeholders, designing, and testing, we unveiled a site that better aligns with what ICTJ and transitional justice are today.

01/24/23

A woman holds a cell phone and looks at a computer screen with ICTJs new website on it

In Focus

Strategic Plan 2022-2027

ICTJ is more than two decades old. At the time it was established, many of those who contributed to transitions in Argentina, Chile, Guatemala, South Africa, and the former Yugoslavia saw the value of a specialized organization that could draw from diverse national experiences to prov...

01/01/23

Report

The Expert’s Choice 2022 Year in Review

Throughout 2022, ICTJ’s experts weighed in on breaking news in more than 10 countries, offering incisive analyses of the political dynamics behind the coverage and the implications for justice, peace, and the rights of victims. In this December edition of the World Report, we look back at the year that was through our Expert’s Choice commentaries, bringing you all of our team’s valuable insights together in one place.

01/04/23

A collage of photos of transitional justice contexts from around the world

Opinion

Stubborn for Our Gender: The Gambia Study on Opportunities for Reparations for Victims and Survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence

This report presents findings from research on the needs and expectations of survivors of sexual and gender-based violence in The Gambia. Based on focus group discussions with survivors and other stakeholders, it analyses obstacles to, as well as opportunities to improve, survivors’ a...

12/05/22

Didier Gbery and Maimuna Manneh

Report

New Study Calls for Reparations for Victims of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence in Uganda

Kampala, October 17, 2022—Sixteen years after the decades-long conflict between the Ugandan government and the rebel group the Lord’s Resistance Army (LRA) ended, victims continue to grapple with its persistent effects. Victims of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) and children born of war, in...

10/17/22

Press Release

We Cannot Survive on Promises Alone: Uganda Study on Opportunities for Reparations for Survivors of Conflict-Related Sexual Violence

This report presents findings from a study conducted by ICTJ, the Women’s Advocacy Network, and the Global Survivors Fund to assess the reparative justice needs of victims of conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV) in Uganda. The study is based on interviews and focus group discussion...

10/17/22

Marianne Akumu, Sarah Kihika Kasande, Grace Acan, and Evelyn Amony

Report

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

Nour El Bejjani Noureddine

In Focus

ICTJ Honors the Winners of the Wide Awake Art Contest in Lebanon and Tunisia

Tunis, March 22, 2022—The International Center for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) will hold a series of cultural activities from March 21 through March 26, 2022, as part of its Wide Awake Art Contest. The contest, launched in January, invited Lebanese and Tunisian artists, as well as expat artists...

03/24/22

Press Release

Ahead of a UN Periodic Review, Uganda Must Do More to Combat Impunity and Deliver Justice to Victims

On January 27, 2022, the UN Human Rights Council's Universal Periodic Review (UPR) Working Group will examine Uganda’s human rights record. The UPR process presents an important opportunity to spotlight the human rights situation in the country, and recommend actions that the government of Uganda should take to fulfill its human rights obligations.

01/25/22

In Focus

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

In Focus

ICTJ Announces Online Course on Prevention and Transitional Justice

New York, January 21, 2022—ICTJ will host an online course, entitled “Prevention and Guarantees of Non-Recurrence: The Role of Transitional Justice,” from March 14 through 18, 2022. Prevention has emerged as a top priority on international policy agendas for sustainable peace and development and global governance, and understanding the preventive capacity of transitional justice is more imperative than ever.

01/21/22

Press Release

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

Press Release

Measured Optimism in The Gambia as Stakeholders Consider the TRRC’s Final Report

On November 25, 2021, The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC) presented its 17-volume final report and recommendations to President Adama Barrow, after multiple delays. The final report includes a record of serious human rights violations committed under Jammeh’s repressive regime and recommendations for pursuing justice. Despite the challenges, steps have already been taken that offer hope that the TRRC’s recommendations will take effect.

12/22/21

Didier Gbery

Opinion

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