198 results

20 Years On, ANC Rules but Legacy of Apartheid Still Lingers

In early May, the African National Congress (ANC) held on to power in South Africa’s general election. However, there is a widespread feeling that the party that oversaw the creation of the groundbreaking Truth and Reconciliation Commission has walked away from its obligations to the South African people.

05/28/14
In Focus

Accountability and Peace for the DRC

Two years after the Democratic Republic of Congo held its first elections since independence, the country is at a crossroads. One of the key challenges facing the DRC today is the question of how the country will address the massive human rights atrocities of its recent past to establ...

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ICTJ

Fact Sheet

Activists and Magistrates Join Forces to Tackle International Crimes in DRC

In meeting spaces in Goma, Bukavu, and Bunia, activists and magistrates are discussing ways that they can work together to improve the prosecution of international crimes in the region and address the concerns of local communities.

12/10/15
In Focus

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
In Focus

Advancing Global Accountability: The Role of Universal Jurisdiction in Prosecuting International Crimes

Invoking the principle of universal jurisdiction opens the door to the possibility of some accountability in circumstances where justice is not possible in countries where the crimes took place. This study considers the challenges facing the exercise of universal jurisdiction and asse...

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Howard Varney and Katarzyna Zduńczyk

Report

African Union Must Act to Address Impunity for International Crimes

In a major effort to promote accountability for serious crimes in Africa, ICTJ joined hundreds of human rights groups and transitional justice partners to ask the African Union to prioritize justice. Addressed to the new African Union (AU) Chairperson Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, the letter warns that strained relationships between the AU and the International Criminal Court (ICC) may put justice at risk.

01/18/13
In Focus

After the Rupture: Understanding Transitional Justice and Reconciliation

Is reconciliation a central aim of transitional justice processes? Or does it have different bearings in different settings? A new paper presents possible understandings of the concept of reconciliation as well as its relationship to the field of transitional justice.

06/29/17
In Focus

Against the Current: War Crimes Prosecutions in Serbia

This report examines the effectiveness of war crimes prosecutions in Serbia. While the War Crimes Chamber (WCC) and the Office of the War Crimes Prosecutor (OWCP) have had some success, significant concerns exist - such as opposition from ethnic nationalists. Despite shortcomings, the...

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ICTJ; Bogdan Ivanišević

Report

'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.
In Focus

'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 34 original photographs, taken by four photographers in various locations in Kosovo, North Macedonia, and Serbia. The photographs fea...

Amicus Curiae Brief: South Africa Apartheid Reparations Case

ICTJ filed an amicus brief in the apartheid reparations case before the Southern District Court of New York on November 25, 2009. The brief supports a decision by the South African Government not to oppose legal action against five international companies that are accused of aiding an...

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ICTJ

Amnesty Does Not Erase the Truth

South Africa’s Constitutional Court recently made a landmark ruling on the right to speak the truth about crimes amnestied by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. ICTJ Truth-Seeking Consultant Howard Varney speaks about the ruling and its significance for South Africa and other countries.

05/02/11
In Focus

Amnesty Must Not Equal Impunity

Background on the role of amnesty in processes of transitional justice and the 2009 DRC Amnesty Law. Given a fragile justice system and culture of impunity, this law risks rewarding blanket amnesty for all crimes committed in the DRC. ICTJ gives suggestions to break the culture of imp...

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ICTJ

Fact Sheet

Are We Still Committed To Human Rights For All?

The United Nations has proclaimed December 10 as International Human Rights Day. The date commemorates the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948, which represented the reaction of the international community to the horrors of the Second World War. Today is a day for reflection more than celebration. A cursory scan of events from the last few weeks has thrown up examples that demonstrate that the belief in human rights for all - in treating all states the same - is more of a tissue-thin membrane than a robust bulwark.

12/10/12
In Focus

Barcelona Course Explores Linkages Between Prevention and Transitional Justice

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.

10/24/18
In Focus

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
In Focus

Bemba’s 18-Year Jail Sentence Is ICC’s Warning to Military Leaders About Sexual Violence

Jean-Pierre Bemba's sentencing is a landmark for the International Criminal Court. Paul Seils looks at how it may reverberate into the future.

06/24/16
In Focus

Bosnia and Herzegovina: In Historic Act, Youth Activists Bridge Ethnic Divide to Honor Victims of All Ethnicities

In an unprecedented act of unity, youth activists from across Bosnia and Herzegovina united to visit sites of former detention camps and pay respect to victims from all ethnic groups and sides of the conflict. Some 50 activists of the initiative “Because It Matters” from Prijedor, Banja Luka, Mostar, Tuzla, Sarajevo, Ljubuski, Gradiska, Konjic and other cities visited locations in Hadzici, Celebici, Jablanica, and Dretelj, where crimes were committed against civilians of Bosniak, Serb, and Croat ethnicities.

04/29/13
In Focus

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Selected Developments in Transitional Justice

This paper provides an overview of the major issues and recent developments in transitional justice in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH). It examines the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), local trials, the proposed Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Sr...

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ICTJ

Briefing Paper

Bosnia and Herzegovina: Submission to the Universal Periodic Review of the UN Human Rights Council

The transitional justice review of Bosnia and Herzegovina says that in spite of important achievements in Bosnia and Herzegovina in terms of transitional justice, a number of substantive concerns remain. The report's recommendations include supporting the implementation of the Nationa...

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ICTJ

UN Universal Periodic Review Submission

Bosnia: The haunting legacy of Ratko Mladic

The trial of Ratko Mladic for genocide, crimes against humanity, and multiple war crimes committed during the war in Bosnia and Herzegovina, began yesterday. But these charges have done little to damage the hero status he enjoys today among the majority of Serbs, writes Refik Hodzic. Unless this legacy is addressed in the communities of Srebrenica and the rest of Bosnia, the outcome of his trial may prove to be merely symbolic, if that.

05/17/12
In Focus

Breathing Life into the New Constitution: A new constitutional approach to law and police in Kenya: lessons from South Africa

Building a constitutional state and pursuing social change is best approached by looking at prior successes. Here is a comparison between the Kenyan and South African constitutions and an outline of how constitutional litigation unfolded in South Africa.

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ICTJ; Howard Varney

Briefing Paper

Building the First Line of Defense against Impunity: Podcast with Phakiso Mochochoko

The global struggle against impunity relies on a frontline of national judicial systems willing and able to prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. In this final podcast on complementarity, Phakiso Mochochoko, head of the Jurisdiction, Complementarity, and Cooperation Division of the International Criminal Court, discusses the role the court must play in supporting complementarity in practice. [Download](/sites/default/files/Mochochoko_ICTJ_Podcast_03202012.mp3) | Duration: 10:17mins | File size: 5.88MB

03/26/12
Podcasts

Can International Justice Foster Reconciliation?

On April 10, the UN General Assembly is holding a thematic debate on the role of international justice in reconciliation processes. The debate was called by UN GA President Vuk Jeremic, of Serbia, in the wake of the recent acquittal of Croatian General Ante Gotovina by the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Unfortunately, it has become clear that the real purpose of this debate is directed at undermining the ICTY, rather than to discuss an important issue, not only in the Balkans, but in a growing number of countries.

04/10/13
In Focus

Case Against Callixte Mbarushimana and Sylvestre Mudacumura

This paper provides a description of the brief proceedings against Callixte Mbarushimana and Sylvestre Mudacumura before the International Criminal Court.

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Michèle Laborde-Barbanègre, Guy Mushiata, and Meritxell Regue

Briefing Paper

Case Against Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo

This briefing paper provides an overview of the proceedings against Germain Katanga and Mathieu Ngudjolo before the International Criminal Court. The conviction and sentence against Katanga signifies the first final judgment of the ICC.

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Michèle Laborde-Barbanègre, Guy Mushiata, and Meritxell Regue

Briefing Paper

Case Against Thomas Lubanga

This briefing paper provides an overview of the proceedings against Thomas Lubanga before the International Criminal Court since the start of the prosecutor’s investigation in 2004 until the 2012 decisions of Trial Chamber I concerning the verdict, the sentence, and reparations. It id...

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Michèle Laborde-Barbanègre, Guy Mushiata, and Meritxell Regue

Briefing Paper

A Casualty of Politics: Overview of Acts and Projects of Reparation On the Territory of the Former Yugoslavia

This study examines various aspects of existing reparations following the 1991-1999 conflicts in the former Yugoslavia. It clarifies the different categories of reparation; identifies groups potentially entitled to compensation; assesses the extent and fairness of existing policies; a...

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ICTJ; Djordje Djordjević

Report

Challenging the Conventional: Can Truth Commissions Strengthen Peace Processes?

This joint report by ICTJ and the Kofi Annan Foundation explores common assumptions about why truth commissions are created in the wake of armed conflict and what factors make them more likely to succeed – or fail. It arises from a high-level symposium hosted by the two organizations ...

Report

Civil Society Groups and Members of the Judiciary Discuss Greater Collaboration on Prosecution of International Crimes in the DRC

ICTJ held a series of workshops in Goma, Bukavu, and Bunia, Eastern DRC, from November 13 until November 20 to discuss opportunities for greater interaction and collaboration between civil society and criminal justice officials to advance the prosecution of international crimes in the Congo, in order to better address the concerns of affected communities.

11/30/15
Press Releases

A Close-up Look at the Fight Against Impunity in the DRC

Colonel Muntazini serves as the focal point for cooperation between the ICC and the military justice system of the DRC, making him ideally placed to explain the practical implications of complementarity. Read his review of our Handbook on Complementarity and discover how it applies to his country and his work.

08/04/16
In Focus

Comments on the Draft Regulations Published by the Department of Justice Dealing with Reparations for Apartheid Era Victims

The South African Coalition for Transitional Justice (SACTJ) submits the following comments regarding the May 11, 2010 General Notice 282 published in the Government Gazette. The Coalition objects to the Notice 282 regulations on procedural, constitutional, and international law groun...

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South African Coalition for Transitional Justice

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...

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Elena Naughton

Report

Conflict and Transitional Justice in Africa (Dari)

Background on the challenges in addressing legacies of past violence in sub-Saharan African countries such as Uganda, Ethiopia and Eritrea. The fact sheet gives an overview of the situation in the region and ICTJ's approaches in promoting transitional justice in individual countries. ...

by

ICTJ

Fact Sheet

Conflict and Transitional Justice in Africa

Background on the challenges in addressing legacies of past violence in sub-Saharan African countries such as Uganda, Ethiopia and Eritrea. The fact sheet gives an overview of the situation in the region and ICTJ's approaches in promoting transitional justice in individual countries. ...

by

ICTJ

Fact Sheet

Confronting Past Crimes at the National Level

Background on conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and the Central African Republic (CAR) in the context of Jean-Pierre Bemba’s trial at the International Criminal Court (ICC). The ICC is preparing to prosecute Bemba of the DRC for alleged rapes, torture and murders that...

by

ICTJ

Fact Sheet

Contested Transitions: Dilemmas of Transitional Justice in Colombia and Comparative Experience

This volume examines the effects, risks, and potential of extending the field of transitional justice to cases that do not present a key moment of political transition to peace or democracy and instead are defined by political continuity and ongoing conflict. It begins with analyses o...

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Amanda Lyons and Michael Reed

Courts of First Resort: Prosecuting International Crimes at the National Level

In the quest to bring perpetrators of massive crimes to justice, international courts should be considered only as a last resort. Efforts to establish rule of law require the development of national capacity to prosecute the most serious crimes. On 25 and 26 October 2012, leading international actors from the judicial, rule of law, and development sectors will convene at the Greentree Estate in Manhasset, New York for the third Greentree Conference on Complementarity. The meeting aims to examine the needs of and challenges to national prosecutions for the most serious crimes in four countries: Ivory Coast, the DRC, Colombia, and Guatemala.

10/24/12
In Focus

Criminal Justice and Forced Displacement in the Former Yugoslavia

This paper is concerned with the relationship between criminal justice and displacement that has taken place as a result of serious violations of international humanitarian law, and considers these issues within the context of justice efforts in the former Yugoslavia. It argues that i...

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Joanna Korner

Report

Croatia: Selected Developments in Transitional Justice

This case study offers an overview of some of the major issues and recent developments in transitional justice in Croatia. While the main focus is on war crimes prosecutions before the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and Croatian courts, it also examines trut...

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ICTJ; Thierry Cruvellier and Marta Valiñas

Briefing Paper

Democratic Republic of Congo: Impact of the Rome Statute and the International Criminal Court

The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC or Congo) presents a critical test for the International Criminal Court (ICC). All of the accused in current ICC trials are from DRC. The Court plays a vital role in DRC regarding complementarity, peace, justice, victims, and affected communities....

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ICTJ; Mima Adjami and Guy Mushiata

Briefing Paper

Difficult Peace, Limited Justice: Ten Years of Peacemaking in the DRC

Difficult Peace, Limited Justice: Ten Years of Peacemaking in the DRC reviews the efforts to address justice during ten years of varied peace negotiations in the Democratic Republic of Congo. A close look the dynamics of peace talks and the resulting accords -- including those of Sun ...

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ICTJ; Laura Davis and Priscilla Hayner

Report

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
In Focus

Documenting Truth

The Documentation Affinity Group (DAG) was established in 2005 by ICTJ and five partner organizations as a peer-to-peer network with a primary focus on human rights documentation. Documenting Truth collects the best practices derived from the work of the DAG organizations in Cambodia,...

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ICTJ; Louis Bickford, Patricia Karam, Hassan Mneimneh, and Patrick Pierce

Report

Don’t Call It ‘International Justice Day’

It may seem trivial for me to write about why those who continue to mark July 17 as "International Justice Day" should finally stop calling it that. Many human rights groups (including ICTJ), United Nations agencies, and governments have been publicly using that phrase since 2010. It is for victims of massive and systematic human rights violations, including abuses that amount to international crimes under the Rome Statute, that it is important to end the misconception that the phrase encourages.

08/03/20

by

Ruben Carranza

World Report

DRC: Lubanga Reparations Decision Should be Celebrated, but Only When Victims Receive Compensation

The decision on reparations by the International Criminal Court (ICC) in the case of Congolese warlord Thomas Lubanga sets a historic precedent, but it should not be celebrated until victims in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) are fully compensated through an inclusive and participatory process. The Lubanga decision stated that reparations “go beyond the notion of punitive justice, towards a solution which is more inclusive, encourages participation and recognizes the need to provide effective remedies for victims.” Yet Ruben Carranza, director of ICTJ’s Reparative Justice program, is cautious about celebrating before the process is complete.

08/13/12
Podcasts

DRC: Refusal to Pardon Serious Crimes Signals Justice Could be On the Way

A new amnesty law passed by the government in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) will grant amnesty to hundreds of members of armed groups engaged in hostilities, including members of the infamous M23 rebels, but stops short of pardoning serious crimes.

05/15/14
In Focus

Educational Reform in Divided Societies: Northern Ireland and Bosnia

The first piece in of our "Transitional Justice and Education" series examines the role of school systems in Bosnia and Northern Ireland.

06/28/16
In Focus

Enforced Disappearances: Justice for the Disappeared Has a Woman’s Face

Enforced disappearances are among the cruelest of crimes. To the kidnapping, torture, and in many cases, murder of the victim, perpetrators intentionally create fear and uncertainty about the fate of the missing person. Although men are predominantly targeted, the impact on women is severe and lasting.

08/30/13
In Focus

Experts Discuss the Impact of Politics on National War Crimes Prosecutions

ICTJ partnered with the Center for Global Affairs at New York University to explore how political will of international and national actors impacts national war crimes proceedings. The panel examined four diverse country scenarios - the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Serbia, Iraq, and Guatemala.

12/03/12
In Focus