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This year, to mark the International Day of the Disappeared, we bring the story of Ziad and Ghassan Halwani, two brothers in Lebanon whose father was kidnapped and disappeared when they were young. Their story is a powerful testament to the long-term impact of disappearances on the life course of those who are still growing up.

CAPE TOWN, April 8, 2011—In a landmark judgment handed down today the Constitutional Court upheld the rights of victims of apartheid era abuses, as well as the media and public, to speak the truth about crimes amnestied by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC). The court held that truth...

Founding affidavit from Hugo van der Merwe of ICTJ regarding case before North Gauteng High Court of South Africa.

On May 11, the South African Department of Justice and Constitutional Development (DOJ) invited comments on new regulations governing the distribution of reparations to victims of the apartheid era in the form of medical and educational benefits. Civil society organizations and groups representing survivors’ interests have raised concerns regarding the scope of the regulations, as well as the DOJ’s overall failure to engage with survivors and consider their views when drafting reparations policies.

Applicants apply to the Supreme Court of Appeal against the judgment regarding North Gauteng High Court, Pretoria.

South African authorities apparently believe that once the country has officially withdrawn from the ICC, it will be free to invite the likes of Sudanese President al-Bashir to the country. That's not so, writes ICTJ's Howard Varney, who explains why the country's obligations would continue beyond its departure from the court.

South Africa, Zimbabwe, Angola, Mozambique and Namibia have all experienced massive violations of human rights in the recent past. Apart from Zimbabwe, where a political crisis continues, all of these states have further seen the end of major conflicts within the last two decades. Only in South Africa have formal transitional justice mechanisms played a visible role, and even there, those mechanisms have left many issues unaddressed.

The Spanish Supreme Court has ruled the judiciary has no place investigating the deaths and disappearances of the Franco era. The verdict is a disappointment for the victims of Francoism and confirms Spain remains unwilling to deliver justice for the crimes of the past, writes Eduardo González, director of ICTJ's Truth and Memory program

The International Criminal Court (ICC) must better communicate what is driving its actions to the public of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and elsewhere around the world if it is to develop confidence in its capacity to act as a guardian of international criminal law.

As the Special Court for Sierra Leone formally ended its work on December 2, 2013, a new museum opened on the former premises of the court, dedicated to peace. The SCSL was a hybrid criminal court, established jointly by the UN and Sierra Leone to prosecute perpetrators of serious crimes committed during the country’s civil war. It operated for over a decade and indicted 13 individuals including the former Liberian President Charles Taylor, who was convicted in 2012 for war crimes. It completed its mandate in 2013. The closing ceremony was presided over by Sierra Leone’s President Ernest Bai Koroma, who said the court “reiterates our commitment to fight impunity, and it also underscores our respect for the promotion of the rule of law and preservation of peace and stability.” The ceremony also marked the opening of the Sierra Leone Peace Museum, which will be housed in the complex of the SCSL. A legacy project by the SCSL and the Government of Sierra Leone, the museum is an independent institution with the mission of preserving the history of the war, honoring its victims, and telling the stories of building peace. The museum’s exhibition aims to narrate the history of the war and the story of the peace process through artifacts. It will also host the archive of public records of both the SCSL and the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as well as other historic documents related to the country’s recent history. The grounds will include a Memorial Garden dedicated as place of reflection for victims of the conflict. Through its mobile outreach team, the museum will bring its exhibitions to schools and communities outside Freetown. It also plans to partner with historic sites around the country to help preserve and memorialize places of importance for communities who were affected by the war. ICTJ is pleased to announced that the Peace Museum’s permanent collection will feature ICTJ’s multimedia project entitled “Seeds of Justice: Sierra Leone,” five portraits of Sierra Leoneans whose lives were impacted by the SCSL. The project is the culmination of a year-long initiative by ICTJ to examine the legacy of the Special Court. “The Peace Museum offers an importance new space for Sierra Leoneans and visitors to learn about the tremendous efforts that Sierra Leone has made towards establishing peace, seeking truth about the past, and realizing justice for some of the top perpetrators of crimes during the war,” said David Tolbert, President of ICTJ. “It can act as an important beacon of memory for generations to come.”