Resource Library

Details the range of measures that will be needed to address the consequences of abuses committed during the U.S. "war on terror," including independent investigations, public disclosure of the truth, prosecutions of those responsible for abuses and redress for victims of serious harm...

The paper focuses on security sector reform (SSR) programmes in view of the prominence SSR now has in donor policy discourse and the ambitious objectives and broad scope of contemporary donor SSR policy. Issues such as human security, transitional justice and gender are also considere...

Recent years have seen an increased recognition of the need to address the housing, land, and property (HLP) rights of displaced populations in post-conflict situations; however, the implementation of restitution programs is challenged by the fact that in most countries affected by in...

While contemporary understandings of restitution have been shaped by international responses to displacement and are primarily humanitarian in nature, restitution has its conceptual roots in traditional rules governing remedies for breaches of international law and is related to trans...

ICTJ sat down with three prominent experts on restorative justice, to learn more about their experiences, restorative justice, and its role in transitional justice and Colombia.

On February 12, 2019, the Assembly of the African Union adopted the African Union Transitional Justice Policy. The policy serves as a guide for member states on effective and credible transitional justice processes to achieve sustainable peace, justice, reconciliation, social cohesion...

Development theory and practice to date has not engaged extensively with transitional justice. This paper explores tentative pathways to conceive of how development and transitional justice practices connect-from a development practitioner's point of view.

Part of a series of practitioner-oriented publications by OHCHR, focused on the establishment and implementation of reparations programs. Download the PDF from the OHCHR website

Part of a series of practitioner-oriented publications by OHCHR, this report provides operational guidelines on the implementation of vetting programs within the broader context of institutional reform in post-conflict or post-authoritarian societies. Download the PDF from the OHCHR w...

Hybrid courts are defined as courts of mixed composition and jurisdiction, encompassing both national and international aspects, usually operating within the jurisdiction where the crimes occurred. Drawing on the lessons learned from hybrid courts created since 1999, this publication ...

This publication is intended to assist in the implementation of principles contained in international human rights documents and treaties. It is a practical tool to provide guidance on implementing reparations initiatives. Its focus is not on redressing single or isolated human rights...

This publication sets out basic considerations on prosecution initiatives. It is intended to assist United Nations field staff when advising on how to address the challenges of prosecuting perpetrators of crimes such as genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. It focuses on t...

This publication sets out basic principles and approaches to truth commissions and is intended to assist policymakers in advising on the development of truth-seeking mechanisms. It summarizes lessons learned from the experiences of over 30 truth commissions in the past two to three d...

This publication provides an operational framework for vetting and institutional reform. It is intended address the challenges of institutional and personnel reform in post-conflict States through the creation of vetting processes that exclude persons who lack integrity from public in...

Political choices made early on in the state-building process have contributed to the current governance and rule of law deficit in Afghanistan. European actions have been marked by a lack of coordination between political and development assistance as well as diverse – and sometimes ...

Efforts underway to address the 2008 Kenyan post-election crisis and the conditions that caused it have provided the country with a unique opportunity to address its long history of human rights violations.

A wide array of international donors are working with Timor-Leste to help support reform in the security sector. While many of these programmes have had a positive impact, donor-driven security reform agendas have been under-coordinated. Fortunately, this is beginning to change, as ...

In societies split dysfunctionally and violently along evident identity fault lines, the challenge of guaranteeing security requires not piecemeal reform of police and/or military organizations, but a holistic, "whole of governance" approach. How different identities are recognized an...

This multimedia project brings together voices of five Sierra Leoneans of different backgrounds reflecting on the legacy of the court as it nears the completion of its mandate.

This briefing paper sets out the obligations of the state and international best practice with respect to the right to truth, both as a key element of a transitional justice strategy and as a critical component of providing effective remedy to victims of gross violations of human righ...

The importance of an independent, representative, and competent truth and reconciliation commission (TRC) to guarantee the rights of victims to truth, justice, and reparations should not be underestimated. Key recommendations in this regard are included in this briefing.

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 a...

Since the end of open armed conflict in the former Yugoslavia, there has been little progress in transitional justice. This particularly applies to Serbia and Montenegro, which has lurched from one political crisis to another. This paper provides an overview of some of the major issue...

The application of transitional justice mechanisms, such as war crimes trials and reparations, has significant flaws in Serbia. Lack of progress may be even greater in truth-seeking and vetting of public officials. Serbia must do much more in all areas of transitional justice, for its...

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...

Years after conflict, dictatorship, or historical injustice, victims throughout the world are still seeking redress and for their dignity to be affirmed. ICTJ has been standing alongside victims since 2001. We have worked in more than 50 different countries, helping to advance transitio...

Sierra Leone has made tremendous progress in implementing transitional justice commitments incumbent on the authorities under the Lomé Peace Agreement (LPA) and international law.

This handbook explains the mandate, origins, purposes, and operating methods of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and Special Court in Sierra Leone. It discusses the differences and similarities between them, in clear, non-technical language. The TRC and Special Court can...

After periods of extended political conflict and of repression or state terrorism, there is an active political struggle about the meaning of what occurred. This paper illustrates some processes through which silenced or hidden ethnic, cultural or gender dimensions come to light ...

This paper explores political exclusion in Kenya and its consequences on the social fabric of the nation. It draws from past governmental reports and analysis to formulate new recommendations that can inform current discourse. It first provides an overview of ethnicity in Kenya. ...