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This study examines the preventive effect of transitional justice in Peru in the aftermath of internal conflict and authoritarianism, focusing on the violence’s root causes and the differentiated impact on victims and affected communities. It contends that while transitional justice has led to policies that contribute to preventing political violence and has enhanced society’s control of institutions, the absence of broader cultural transformation means that the process of change remains unfinished.

This study examines how transitional justice measures in Morocco have helped prevent state violence repression and social and economic exclusion. These measures included the Equity and Reconciliation Commission, which diagnosed some historical wrongdoings and called for reform to prevent their recurrence, and reparations, which provided important benefits to victims and drew attention to regional exclusion. The absence of regime change, however, has undermined the legitimacy of transitional justice and constrained its preventive impact.

This report examines the preventive impact of transitional justice mechanisms in Colombia before the 2016 peace agreement. It finds that these measures have contributed to prevention by strengthening institutional responses to rights violations, shaping the public agenda, developing a culture of human rights, and facilitating the reintegration of victims. It also concludes that transitional justice has not done all it could to promote the structural changes needed to resolve underlying violent dynamics.

While Armenia may rightfully seek acknowledgment from its neighbors of the genocide and other egregious violations, for its part, it must have the courage to reckon with its own recent past in the 30 years since achieving statehood, which includes war crimes, systematic corruption, and large-scale human rights abuses against its own citizens. Failing to do so ultimately threatens the young republic’s democracy.

This report summarizes the findings of an ICTJ research project on the contribution of transitional justice to prevention. Drawing from five country case studies, it contends that addressing the past can help to prevent the recurrence not only of human rights violations but also violence and injustice more broadly by fostering individual and collective inclusion and catalyzing long-term reform. It also identifies common limitations to the preventive impact of transitional justice.