Transitional Justice in the Twenty-First Century: Beyond Truth versus Justice

 

Transitional Justice in the Twenty‐First Century

Dealing with the aftermath of civil conflict or the fall of a repressive government continues to trouble countries throughout the world. Whereas much of the 1990s was occupied with debates concerning the relative merits of criminal prosecutions and truth commissions, by the end of the decade a consensus emerged that this either/or approach was inappropriate and unnecessary. A second generation of transitional justice experiences have stressed both truth and justice and recognize that a single method may inadequately serve societies rebuilding after conflict or dictatorship. Based on studies in ten countries, this book analyzes how some combine multiple institutions, others experiment with community‐level initiatives that draw on traditional law and culture, whilst others combine internal actions with transnational or international ones. The authors argue that transitional justice efforts must also now consider the challenges to legitimacy and local ownership emerging after external military intervention or occupation.

NAOMI ROHT‐ARRIAZA
is Professor of Law at the University of California, Hastings College of the Law. She is the author of
The Pinochet Effect : Transnational Justice in the Age of Human Rights
(2005) and
Impunity and Human Rights in International Law and Practice
(1995).

JAVIER MARIEZCURRENA
is a Legal Advisor to the Federal Secretary for Human Rights in Argentina and former Transitional Justice Project Manager at the Center for Civil and Human Rights, University of Notre Dame. He is the co‐editor of
Inter‐American System of Human Rights and Freedom of Expression in Paraguay
(2002),
Truth and Justice, Homage to Emilio F. Mignone
(2001) and
Basic Studies on Human Rights, Vol. X
(2000).

Transitional Justice in the Twenty‐First Century
 
Beyond Truth versus Justice
Edited by
 
Naomi Roht-Arriaza and Javier Mariezcurrena
 

CAMBRIDGE UNIVERSITY PRESS
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Cambridge University Press
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Published in the United States of America by Cambridge University Press, New York
www.cambridge.org
Information on this title :
www.cambridge.org/9780521677509
© Cambridge University Press 2006
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and to the provisions of relevant collective licensing agreements,
no reproduction of any part may take place without
the written permission of Cambridge University Press.
First published in print format 2006
ISBN-13 978-0-511-25119-1 mobipocket
ISBN-10 0-511-25119-X mobipocket
ISBN-13 978-0-521-86010-9 hardback
ISBN-10 0-521-86010-5 hardback
ISBN-13 978-0-521-67750-9 paperback
ISBN-10 0-521-67750-5 paperback

Cambridge University Press has no responsibility for the persistence or accuracy of URLs for external or third-party internet websites referred to in this book, and does not guarantee that any content on such websites is, or will remain, accurate or appropriate.

Contents
 
List of contributors
Acknowledgments
The new landscape of transitional justice
Naomi Roht‐Arriaza
 

Part 1 Truth, justice, and multiple institutions

Introduction to Part I
Naomi Roht‐Arriaza
1
The Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission
William A. Schabas
2
Transitional criminal justice in Sierra Leone
Sigall Horovitz
3
The Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the challenge of impunity
Eduardo González Cueva
4
The “Mexican solution” to transitional justice
Mariclaire Acosta and Esa Ennelin
5
No justice, no peace : Discussion of a legal framework regarding the demobilization of non‐state armed groups in Colombia
Maria JosÉ Guembe and Helena Olea
6
Hybrid attempts at accountability for serious crimes in Timor Leste
Caitlin Reiger
 

Part 2 Levels of justice : Local, national and international

Introduction to Part II
Naomi Roht‐Arriaza
7
A new approach to restorative justice – East Timor's Community Reconciliation Processes
Patrick Burgess
8
Justice at the grassroots ? Gacaca trials in Rwanda
Timothy Longman
9
Bremer's “Gordian Knot” : Transitional justice and the US occupation of Iraq
Eric Stover, Hanny Megally and Hania Mufti
10
Truth, justice and stability in Afghanistan
Patricia Gossman
11
The prosecution of Hissène Habré : International accountability, national impunity
Reed Brody
12
Argentina's contribution to global trends in transitional justice
Kathryn Sikkink and Carrie Booth Walling
13
Transitional justice : Lessons learned and the road ahead
Ellen Lutz
Index
Contributors
 

MARICLAIRE ACOSTA

was Deputy Minister for Human Rights and Democracy (2001–03) in the Ministry for Foreign Affairs of Mexico (SecretarÃa de Relaciones Exteriores). A longâ€time human rights defender, she presided over the Mexican Section of Amnesty International in the 1970s, and founded two important human rights organizations : the Mexican Academy for Human Rights (Executive Director from 1984 to 1989) and the Mexican Commission for the Defense and Promotion of Human Rights (Chairperson from 1990 to 2001). She has also been a member of the International Advisory Board of the Council for Foreign Relations. She received the Encomienda de Número, Orden del Mérito Civil from the King of Spain in January 2003 for her longtime dedication to the cause of human rights. She works with the Organization of American States.

REED BRODY

is Special Counsel for Prosecutions at Human Rights Watch. He was part of the international coalition supporting the Habré prosecution. Prior to his current position, he worked with the International Commission of Jurists and the United Nations Mission to E1 Salvador, among others.

PATRICK BURGESS

is Principal Legal Counsel for the East Timor Commission for Reception, Truth and Reconciliation. He was formerly the Director of Human Rights of the UNTAET and UNMISET missions to East Timor (2000–03).

EDUARDO GONZáLEZ CUEVA

is a Senior Associate at the International Center for Transitional Justice. He worked at the Peruvian Truth and Reconciliation Commission as the Director of the Public Hearings and Victims and Witnesses Protection Units during 2002, and as a member of the Editorial Committee for the Final Report, during 2003.

ESA ENNELIN

studied for his Masters thesis at the Department of Social and Political History at the University of Helsinki. He has researched crisis decisionâ€making at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs
and worked defending human rights in Mexico. Currently he is working in London at the international human rights organization ARTICLE 19.

PATRICIA GOSSMAN

is Project Director for the Afghanistan Justice Project. Ms. Gossman was previously a researcher for Human Rights Watch's Middle Eastern Division.

MARIA JOSé GUEMBE,

LL.M. University of Notre Dame, is an Argentine attorney. Ms. Guembe previously headed the program on accountability for human rights violations at the Center for Legal and Social Studies (CELS) in Argentina. She now works on human rights issues in Mexico.

SIGALL HOROVITZ

is an Attorneyâ€atâ€Law and member of the New York and Israeli Bars. She works at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda as the Associate Legal Officer directly attached to the Tribunal's President. Previously, she worked at the Special Court for Sierra Leone and at the Israeli Justice Ministry's International Department. She has also conducted research on behalf of the United Nations Office of Legal Affairs and Human Rights Watch.

TIMOTHY LONGMAN

is Professor of Political Science and Africana Studies, Vassar College. Since 2001, Dr. Longman has been the Rwanda research director for the Human Rights Center at the University of California, Berkeley. From 2001 to 2003, Dr. Longman was based in Berkeley, directing a number of research projects funded by the MacArthur Foundation and Hewlett Foundation looking at the process of social reconstruction in Rwanda. Dr. Longman was head of the field office for Human Rights Watch and the Federation International des Ligues des Droits de l'Homme (FIDH) in Butare, Rwanda. He continues to work as a consultant to Human Rights Watch, working on Rwanda, Burundi, and Congo.

ELLEN LUTZ

is the Executive Director of Cultural Survival. She formerly was the Executive Director of the Center for Human Rights and Conflict Resolution and taught international human rights law at Tufts University's Fletcher School. She has written widely on human rights and conflict resolution, accountability for human rights violations, and human rights in Latin America.

JAVIER MARIEZCURRENA

is an attorney in the office of the Argentine Secretariat for Human Rights. He was previously the Transitional Justice Project Manager at the Center for Civil and Human Rights, University of Notre Dame.

HANNY MEGALLY

is Director, Middle East and North Africa, International Center for Transitional Justice. Mr. Megally was previously the Executive Director of the Middle East and North Africa Division of Human Rights Watch.

HANIA MUFTI

is a researcher on the Middle East for Human Rights Watch.

HELENA OLEA

is a JSD candidate at the University of Notre Dame. A Colombian attorney, she previously worked at the Colombian Commission of Jurists.

CAITLIN REIGER

is a Senior Associate at the International Center for Transitional Justice. She was previously the Senior Chambers Legal Officer at the Special Court for Sierra Leone. From 2001 to 2002 she was coâ€director of the East Timor Judicial System Monitoring Programme (JSMP) in Dili, which monitors the operation of the Special Panels for Serious Crimes and the development of the national justice system.

NAOMI ROHTâ€ARRIAZA

is Professor of Law, University of California, Hastings College of the Law. Professor Rohtâ€Arriaza is the editor of
Impunity and Human Rights in International Law and Practice
(1995) and
The Pinochet Effect : Transnational Justice in the Age of Human Rights
(2005), as well as numerous articles on transitional justice.

WILLIAM A. SCHABAS

is Professor of Human Rights Law, National University of Ireland, Galway, and Director, Irish Centre for Human Rights. The author was a member of the Sierra Leone Truth and Reconciliation Commission. This article is written in his private capacity and does not necessarily reflect the views of the other commissioners or of the Commission.

KATHRYN SIKKINK

is Arleen C. Carlson Professor of Political Science and the McKnight Distinguished University Professor at the University of Minnesota. She is a fellow of the Council on Foreign Relations and the American Association for Arts and Sciences, a member of the editorial board of the American Political Science Review and International Studies Quarterly, and the chair of the editorial board of the journal International Organization.

ERIC STOVER

is the Director of the Human Rights Center and Adjunct Professor, School of Public Health, University of California, Berkeley. He was the Executive Director of Physicians for Human Rights (PHR) until December 1995. Since 1993, he has served on several
medicolegal investigations as an “Expert on Mission†to the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague. In March and April 1995, he conducted a survey of mass graves throughout Rwanda for the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda. In June 1984, Mr. Stover testified for the prosecution at the trial of leaders of the military junta which ruled Argentina from 1976 to 1983.

CARRIE BOOTH WALLING

is a PhD candidate in Political Science, University of Minnesota.

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