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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 impunity, and necessary reforms in order to bring about true justice and a lasting peace.

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 City, Ituri, Nairobi, and Goma -- based on extensive interviews of those most closely involved from the national and international communities, provides an essential backdrop to the current efforts to end fighting in Eastern Congo.

In October 2008, fighting erupted in the North Kivu province in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) between rebel troops of Laurent Nkunda's Congrès National pour la Défense du Peuple (CNDP) movement, local militia groups, and troops of the Forces Armées de la République Démocratique du Congo (FARDC), the national Congolese army. This outbreak of violence indicates that the Congolese security system is incapable of defending the state and the state's authority, and poses a serious threat to the population, particularly to women and children.

Situation brief on the International Criminal Court's prosecution against Thomas Lubanga, the former leader of the Union des Patriotes Congolais (UPC) who has been charged with genocide and crimes against humanity. Due to problems with the prosecutor's proposed use of evidence, the trial was cancelled shortly before it was scheduled to begin and the proceedings were put on hold. After appeals by the prosecutor, the court's Trial Chamber reinstated the proceedings and set the trial for Jan. 26, 2009. Lubanga is the first accused to be tried by the court.

Background on the 2004 ICC arrest warrant for Bosco Ntaganda, wanted for war crimes allegedly committed in the DRC including civilian massacres and the recruitment of child soldiers. In 2009, the Congolese government decided not to arrest Bosco, and instead appointed him a deputy commander of military operations against the FDLR rebels.

The three conference organizers stressed the importance of bringing the stakeholders of victim participation in the ECCC together to encourage a dialogue to identify and address the various opportunities and challenges presented by victim participation, particularly as Civil Parties, in ECCC proceedings.

Background on the massive human rights violations in the states that declared independence from the Former Yugoslavia from 1991 onwards, including Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo, resulting in the deaths of over 140,000 people and four million displaced. The fact sheet covers the criminal prosecutions of major figures that took place in the aftermath of the violence, and initiatives in truth-seeking, institutional reforms and reparations.

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 National War Crimes Strategy, applying harmonized legislation throughout Bosnia and Herzegovina, establishing an effective witness support and protection programme, and strengthening local capacities for war crimes prosecutions.

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of some of the major issues and recent developments in transitional justice in Serbia and Montenegro. In particular, it examines the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY), local trials, the national Truth and Reconciliation Commission, reparations, and vetting of public officials.

Transitional Justice and Georgia's Conflicts: Breaking the Silence examines the conflicts involving Georgia from a transitional justice perspective. Frichova argues that introducing this dimension into the public discourse in Georgia and its breakaway territories could help advance constructive social change.