Search

To mark 15 years of ICTJ, we asked staff past and present for memories that stand out to them - moments that throw the stakes of our work into sharp relief and resonate with them years later. Virginie Ladisch and Clara Ramirez-Barat recall how one Canadian student, in exploring the legacy of the country's Residential Schools, arrived at the concept of "never again."

In the Netherlands, a court sentenced an arms dealer to 19 years in prison for his role in war crimes in Liberia. What does his case tell us about pursuing justice for economic crimes in Liberia and beyond?

Ongoing economic and social inequality, a legacy of the dictatorship, affects Tunisians across generations, but has particularly pronounced impacts on young people. ICTJ worked with four young photographers to confront the consequences of marginalization and explore its impacts on Tunisian youth. Their four photo galleries comprise the exhibition "Marginalization in Tunisia: Images of an Invisible Repression.” In this gallery, Ali Jabeur explores the environmental and economic devastation of the fishing town of Gabes. About the Gallery For years, many people in the Gabes region in eastern Tunisia were fishermen. The Gulf of Gabes is the largest in Tunisia home to a variety of fish and plentiful resources. But in 1947 a chemical company set up in the region. At first it was a boon, creating more jobs, but over time it has become a curse: the factory has become a source of deadly chemical pollution. Aside from the toxic gas that it produces the company also pours waste into the sea each day, which has driven out many of the marine animals that have given life to the region. These problems have had a deep impact on the region: most fishermen in Gabes are now unemployed and have many qualms with the state, which does not seek solutions for their plight. About the Photographer Ali Jabeur, 26, began pursuing photography as a child. “I was the only one in the family allowed to use my father’s ‘very precious’ camera,” he explains. Those amateur family snapshots blossomed into a serious passion during the 2011 Jasmine Revolution, when Ali discovered the power of the photo. “I realized that being a photographer is a responsibility and that taking pictures is a mission,” he says. “For me, it means committing to and defending a cause, an approach that guides all of my work.” Ali is now photojournalist and is currently setting his own communication company up. Explore the other three galleries that comprise "Marginalization in Tunisia: Images of an Invisible Repression" Nedra Jouini on the psychological effects of marginalization Emna Fetni on the social and spacial outskirts of Tunis Ashraf Gharbi on the challenges facing one couple who stood up to the dictatorship

This is the third time that the Tunisian government, supported by several Members of Parliament, has put debate of the National Reconciliation Law on the political agenda. Rearranged in form but with the same substantial faults, this law has mobilized the opposition — for the third time — of approximately 20 civil society organizations that met yesterday and plan to soon hold a press conference.

In Africa's Great Lakes region, countries face common challenges like bad governance, inequitable distribution of natural resources, and ethnic divisions. As nations like Burundi, Central African Republic and South Sudan work towards peacebuilding and accountability, they should learn from what has worked and what has not in neighboring countries, writes Sarah Kihika Kasande, ICTJ's Head of Office in Uganda.

The impact of Tunisia's transitional justice process is rooted in its ability to give voice to diverse segments of the population, including historically marginalized communities. A workshop hosted by ICTJ brought generations of women together to explore truth-telling techniques and create space for all voices.

Money alone cannot compensate sexual violence committed on a massive scale, particularly when such crimes are accompanied by other forms of violations affecting entire communities. ICTJ's Cristián Correa examines how rehabilitation, education, and acknowledgement can bring victims closer to full restitution for their suffering.

A new briefing paper from the International Center for Transitional Justice provides guidance for national courts issuing decisions on redress of human rights violations involving sexual violence. It encourages judges, advocates and prosecutors to consider the full range of possible forms of redress when ordering reparations for victims, to make use of relevant national and international decisions in interpreting domestic laws, and to pay particular attention to how sexual violence may affect different victims.

For decades, successive Myanmar political and military leaders, including Aung San Suu Kyi’s, have flatly denied what millions of their citizens know: that the military has committed and continues to commit human rights violations. A new UN inquiry into those crimes is provides a moment of truth for Suu Kyi's commitment to justice, writes ICTJ's Aileen Thomson.

Zambia should reaffirm its membership in the International Criminal Court to best advance justice for victims of atrocities, a group of African organizations and international nongovernmental organizations with a presence in Africa said today.