Issues of National Reconciliation

Several issues surround the use of restorative processes after national conflicts and mass violence. These documents discuss many of those issues.

African women mobilize to build peace

from the article by Yvette Moore on United Methodist Women: ….Women from Mozambique described ways they are working to create a culture of peace in their country after years of war. “Since the signing of the peace agreement in 1992, we can live in peace,” Rute Uthui of United Methodist Women of Mozambique said through an interpreter. “In the church since last year we always talk about peace and the maintaining of peace on the radio and in the news. Our women’s group meets every Thursday, and we never walk out without talking about peace and what we can do to maintain it. We are facing now criminality. When those people are caught, some want to beat them, but we say, talk to them—punish them according to what they’ve done—but not the violence, talk to them about peace.”

Restorative justice: The long struggle

from the article by Donald Shriver in Tikkun: ….Large, organized, collective interests are at odds with the future of restorative justice: unions of prison guards, economic benefits to communities from prisons, and then—perhaps the most difficult injustice of all—historical crimes whose legacies subject whole groups of people to continuing injustice. Like the Maori, indigenous peoples in the United States and Canada are waiting for healings that exceed any form of individual therapy for crime’s victims and offenders: the land stolen by European colonists from the indigenous, the treaties broken, the genocide, intended or not, that devastated them. Perhaps, speculates Elster, the restorative experience of individuals in procedures like family group conferences and victim compensations will prepare people to see their duties to work as citizens for restorative remedies for these huge historical injustices.

Restorative approaches in local conflicts of Northern Ireland

rom the report by Tim Chapman, Derick Wilson and Hugh Campbell for ALTERNATIVE: ….While many people in Northern Ireland encounter each other through their employment, through shopping and through their social life, most people live in neighbourhoods that are predominantly made up of Protestants or Catholics. The many community relations projects throughout the country offer opportunities for people of different identities to meet and share their experiences. These are voluntary programmes and may not attract those most antagonistic towards the „other‟ and most engaged in violence. Those who are arrested for violence or hate crime will be dealt with by the criminal justice system and are unlikely to engage with their victims unless they are under the age of 18 or are referred to a community based restorative project.

The gods are angry

from the article by George Ayittey in the Wall Street Journal: ....There are more than 2,000 African ethnic groups but despite the incredible diversity there are striking commonalities among them. Whereas Western jurisprudence emphasizes punishing the guilty, the widespread African tradition stresses restitution and reconciliation or "restorative justice"—the basis of South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commissions established after the dismantling of Apartheid. Africa's economic heritage featured free village markets. There were rudimentary free markets in Timbuktu, Kano, Salaga, Onitsa, Mombasa and elsewhere before the advent of the colonial era. Whereas the West practiced majoritarian, or representative, democracy, ancient Africans practiced participatory democracy, where decisions were taken by consensus at village meetings variously called asetena kese by the Ashanti, ama-ala by the Igbo, guurti by the Somali, dare by the Shona, ndaba by the Zulu or kgotla by the Tswana.

How does healing happen?

from the column by Paula Palmer and Aya Medrud in Daily Camera: The Restorative Justice movement teaches us that everyone involved in a crime or injustice (victims, perpetrators, and the community of people whose lives are touched and altered) needs healing and must participate in the healing process. This year, the One Action One Boulder project has pointed to a gaping wound in the Boulder Valley, a wound that goes back 150 years. We do not like to think about it because it makes good people feel bad. Still, it is undeniable: we live on land stolen from the Arapaho and Cheyenne peoples, and we are all unconscious beneficiaries of the swindle. Our community needs healing. In the coming Thanksgiving season we have an important opportunity.

Central America: Promoting restorative justice

from the article by Rhegan Hyypio on Maryknoll Office for Global Concerns: ....Despite increased requests for alternative initiatives to curb violence and crime (for instance, see the Caravan for Peace, September-October 2012 NewsNotes), the U.S. continues to spend hundreds of millions of dollars in military aid to Latin America, which often promotes a dysfunctional system. Lisa Haugaard, director of the Latin America Working Group, testified to the U.S. Congress in September: "[It] is essential that the United States not encourage militaries to take over roles that are more appropriate for police forces … In both Central America and Mexico, we are concerned that the U.S. government has either encouraged or tacitly supported inappropriate roles for the military ... Even though we all know that police are often too weak, corrupt, or abusive, it is a short-term and shortsighted solution to place military in police roles, and it can lead to more abuses. And military-style responses to law enforcement problems—whether or not they are carried out by military forces—can lead to serious human rights abuses."

Girl's death 24 years ago haunts quest for justice in reformist Myanmar

from the article by Andrew R.C. Marshall on Reuters: ....The authorities haven't forgotten either. Political reform in Myanmar is fostering greater openness about past atrocities but little accountability, especially when the country's still-powerful military is involved. Today, Win Maw Oo's impoverished and long-suffering family remains under police surveillance.

Restorative Justice Requires Compensation

I don't know that comepensation is required to make a TC successful or restorative for a couple of basic reasons. One, often there is very [...]

Rwanda: healing for victims

Thank you for publishing this article. It is our view that if victims or the victims' families have experienced some healing from gacaca justice then [...]

Transitional justice in the shadow of the Arab Spring

from the article by Sarah Khatib on Muftah: Whether recovering from the horrific realities of war or the effects of long-standing repressive regimes, societies often find themselves attempting to reconcile their past while safeguarding a better future. Since the end of World War II, this struggle has become an increasingly important feature of the political transitions undertaken by post-conflict countries.

Gacaca: A successful experiment in restorative justice?

from the article by Charlotte Clapham on e-International Relations: ....The twofold reparative function of restorative justice is, however, crucial and so the extent to which gacaca’s emphasis on ‘truth-telling’ realised its desired outcome is subject to debate. To draw on Johnstone’s conception of restorative justice once again, the fact that gacaca failed to offer something positive, in the form of compensation, to meet the needs of the victims (Johnstone 2004: 9-10) meant part of its reparative function was undermined. For example, whilst ‘truth-telling’ is believed to be cathartic for victims, evidence of ‘traumatization’ through their testimonies did in many cases incite ‘fear, anxiety and sadness’ (Rime et al 2011: 701; Brouneus 2008). Although this may be unavoidable for crimes of such extreme brutality, in order for victims’ engagement in the process of ‘truth-telling’ between victim and perpetrator to hold a healing quality, adequate compensation is needed to empower victims (see, Baines 2007: 104; Waldorf 2006: 430) as well to avoid a ‘re-victimization’ of those involved (Wielenga and Harris 2011: 20; AI 2000: 8). Gacaca’s reparative qualities were therefore hindered, as its lack of compensation for victims (AI 2000: 9) meant that for many the process failed to ameliorate the damage caused by the crime and instead caused further harm.

At last, truth and reconciliation for Maine's Indian Adoption Project legacies

from the article on ICTJ.org: Friday, June 29, was both a "great day and a sad day" for the US state of Maine, in the words of its governor, Paul LePage. It was a great day because Maine was taking an historic step to address the legacies of the 1950's and 60's Indian Adoption Project, a program which removed hundreds of Native American children from their families and tribes and placed them in the state-run foster care system.

Rwanda: Kagame commends Gacaca courts

from the article by Jean-Christophe Nsanzimana on allafrica.com: The 1994 Genocide against the Tutsis and its aftermath, said president Kagame, presented us with challenges that tested us all to limit. Among these challenges was redress for victims, perpetrators' accountability for their crimes and restoring harmony among Rwandans. While Rwanda could have chosen the path of vengeance, or of general amnesty, Kagame said the people had chosen the hard but best way of justice and reconciliation. That is a victory to celebrate, he said on Monday during the official closing of the participative justice of Gacaca courts which started in June 2002.

Why Iraq needs a court of truth and reconciliation now

from the article by Faris Harram in niqash: Recently I read the arrest warrant that was issued against [Iraqi Vice President] Tariq al-Hashimi on Interpol’s website. It’s difficult to know whether the man is innocent or guilty and we will all have to wait until Iraqi courts issue a verdict. But reading the warrant made me think about the golden opportunity that Iraq after 2003, when the nation had the chance to really redress the cultural imbalances created during the rule of [former Iraqi leader] Saddam Hussein. When Hussein was caught and arrested very few Iraqis spoke out to suggest a reconciliation process. Such a process would have opened the door for Iraq’s elite - intellectuals, academics, sociologists, psychologists, economists and even clerics - to initiate a unique debate.

I want justice for conflict victims in Kenya

from the article by Tecla Namachnija in Eve Woman Magazine: My experiences with people who had suffered as a result of conflict motivated me to go for the TJRC job. The conditions they faced were so harsh that I suffered secondary trauma at some point because I internalised the pain and suffering of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) and refugees I interacted with. Having trained in restorative justice in the US and through my experience at the community level, I realised that the line between the victim and perpetrator is so blurred that only restorative justice could work.

Treaty settlements process: Restorative justice in action

from the article on Te Puni Kokiri: The Treaty of Waitangi settlements process is restorative justice in action says Māori Affairs Minister Pita Sharples. Speaking at the launch of JustSpeak’s paper on Māori and the Criminal Justice System, he recalled the recent settlement of five Treaty of Waitangi claims.

Taylor war crimes verdict incomplete justice

from the article by Carina Ray in the Bradenton Herald: The conviction of former Liberian President Charles Taylor amounts to only partial justice. While many Sierra Leoneans are relieved to see Taylor finally convicted for his destructive role in their country's brutal civil war, his wanton destabilization elsewhere in West Africa hardly figured in the criminal proceedings against him.

New Nationalism and national healing: The case of South Sudan

from John Ashworth's article in Sudan Tribune: So how do we begin to bring healing? The constitutional review can be a healing process if done properly. That must include popular participation, dealing with issues which concern the people. National healing is already in the preamble of the Transitional Constitution:

New Nationalism and national healing: The case of South Sudan

from John Ashworth's article in Sudan Tribune: So how do we begin to bring healing? The constitutional review can be a healing process if done properly. That must include popular participation, dealing with issues which concern the people. National healing is already in the preamble of the Transitional Constitution:

The Jirga in modern day Afghanistan

from the article by Ali Gohar in OPen Democracy: ....The working principals of the Jirga are community based and fact finding; it acts like a modern jury system. The Jirga intervenes to halt violence, identify the issues in order to resolve them through mediation or arbitration, and work towards reconciliation and rehabilitation. The Jirga system could also be described in terms of the three aspects of peacekeeping, peacemaking, and peacebuilding, through the use of Tega (ceasefire), Nagha (ban on arms show), Community Policing (Arbakai) and volunteer force (Lakhkar).