Transitional Justice

Transitional justice is a response to systematic or widespread violations of human rights.
It seeks recognition for victims and promotion of possibilities for peace, reconciliation and democracy.
Transitional justice is not a special form of justice but justice adapted to societies transforming themselves after a period of pervasive human rights abuse.
In some cases, these transformations happen suddenly; in others, they may take place over many decades.

GOALS

Transitional justice approach is based on a fundamental belief in universal human rights. Because systemic human rights violations affect not just the direct victims, but society as a whole, in addition to satisfying these obligations, states have duties to guarantee that the violations will not recur, and therefore, a special duty to reform institutions that were either involved in or incapable of preventing the abuses, but before that, it is a matter of compassion, humanity and solidarity. A history of unaddressed massive abuses is likely to be socially divisive, to generate mistrust between groups and in the institutions of the State, and to hamper or slow down the achievement of security and development goals. It raises questions about the commitment to the rule of law and, ultimately, can lead to cyclical recurrence of violence in various forms. As it is seen in most countries where massive human rights violations take place, the claims of justice refuse to ‘go away.’ Future leaders need to know that.

FEE: 150 KM (for IUS students/staff 100 KM)