Agatha Ndonga’s Post

On Tuesday September 3, the South Sudanese Transitional Legislative Assembly passed two pieces of legislation in line with the countries’ transitional justice obligations set out in the 2018 Revitalized Peace Agreement.  The Committee for Peace and Reconciliation of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly allowed civil society organizations as observers in the 3 and 4th reading of the bills. The bills, once assented into law by the President, establish the Commission for the Truth, Reconciliation and Healing (CTRH) and the Compensation and Reparations Authority (CRA).  These measures are a huge step towards justice, reconciliation, and healing for those affected by grave violations during the conflict in South Sudan. PILPG commends the progress made as well as the tireless work of civil society, in particular PILPG Senior Peace Fellow and Centre for Inclusive Governance, Peace & Justice (CIGPJ) director, Jackline Nasiwa, in reviewing the bills and ensuring that they are victim-centered and inclusive. While this is a significant development, hopefully paving the way for establishment of the Hybrid Court for South Sudan (HCSS), South Sudanese civil society will continue to underline the importance in South Sudan’s transitional justice processes of: ⏺ A broad definition of victim(s); ⏺ Targeted reparations to victims through allocation of a Reparations Funds for compensating victims individually and collectively alongside memorials and victim centers; ⏺ Special attention to conflict related sexual violence (CRSV); ⏺ Special attention to children born out of rape during conflict;  ⏺ Not allowing for blanket amnesty for those responsible for grave human rights violations; ⏺ The mode of selection of commissioners and persons responsible for carrying out the mandates of these mechanisms 🔗Learn more about the new Bills here: https://lnkd.in/e2dKFP8A -Founder, Dr. Paul R. Williams

South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission Telling the Truth in Times of Human Violations Takes Bold Action One of the biggest challenges for some of those people was they were still living in parts of the country where human rights violations still continued in 1996 and ‘97. There were three committees: 1. The Human Rights Violations Committee 2. The Amnesty Committee 3. The Reparations Committee. All three were operational, but the first one that got to work was the Human Rights Violations Committee. Human Rights Violations Committee Goal: For those violated: Be Seen. Be Acknowledged. Be Heard. The pain that people were still going through because a family member disappeared. It was to surface that and to show it to the whole country because a large part of the country was in denial that this actually happened. The Amnesty Commission Goal: For those who committed the violations: Be Transparent. Be Accountable. Be Truthful. The Reparations Committee: Ensure those violated fairly obtained: Reparations, Restitution. Restoration. It was very challenging for people to come forward. Telling the Truth in Times of Human Violations Takes Bold Action. But if No Truth, No Reconciliation, and No Reparations, there is No Healing. “DEI Adapt, Transform, or a Rigged Monopoly?” with former JSE Director Zeona Jacobs in Switzerland https://buff.ly/3W1MRbA

Where the Truth is Compromised, Justice is Defeated 24 March 2024 Press Statement On the International Day for the Right to the Truth “The truth is an empowering and healing force. We embrace it for the past, the present and the future.” UN Secretary-General António Guterres The Zimbabwe Human Rights Association (ZimRights) joins the rest of the world in commemorating the International Day for the Right to the Truth Concerning Gross Human Rights Violations (International Day of Truth). Our theme for this year is: Where the truth is compromised, justice is defeated. The International Day of Truth was established on 21 December 2010 by the United Nations General Assembly through resolution a/res/68/165. The purpose of this day is to honour the memory of victims and survivors of gross human rights violations, to pay tribute to those who devoted their lives to the struggle for human rights and recognise in particular the important work and values of Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero of El Salvador. Archbishop Romero was assassinated on 24 March 1980, after denouncing violations of the human rights of the most vulnerable populations and defending the principles of protecting lives, promoting human dignity and opposition to all forms of violence. Zimbabwe has been bedevilled by many cases of gross human rights violations in which over 80 000 people have been killed in the last half a century. Many more thousands have been tortured and now live with trauma. Click the link below to read more https://lnkd.in/dE_j-VZE

Earlier this week, South Sudan's President Salva Kiir ratified two transitional justice laws aimed at addressing the crimes committed during the country’s brutal conflict since 2013. We welcome the signing into law of the Commission for Truth, Reconciliation, and Healing and the Compensation and Reparation Authority bills, as it paves the way for advancing transitional justice in South Sudan. It represents an important step as the State recognises its obligations to address the rights of survivors of conflict-related sexual violence. However, the laws fail to address important concerns: - Lack of definition: The laws do not provide a definition of conflict-related sexual violence; - No financial or material compensation: They do not allow for financial or material compensation; - Exclusion of children born of conflict-related sexual violence: The laws fail to explicitly include these children. GSF and partners encourage the unity government to include survivors as active participants in the implementation of these laws to ensure adequate, effective, and prompt reparations. Mariana Goetz Rights for Peace Jackline Nasiwa

Dive into 'The 50% Justice Challenge and its Response' by Sam Muller, HiiL's founder and CEO, and Theresa Smout, our Programme Director for Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and Ethiopia. Following the Commonwealth Law Ministers Meeting, Sam and Theresa discuss solutions to the universally acknowledged need for justice system reform in order to close the justice gap. A must-read for Judiciary and Ministries of Justice professionals seeking routes to impactful change: https://lnkd.in/eeGgxXFM #JusticeReform #PeopleCenteredJustice #JusticeSolutions

Transitional justice refers to the set of judicial and non-judicial measures implemented to redress legacies of human rights abuses. These measures include: Criminal Prosecutions, Truth Commissions, Reparations Programs Institutional Reforms and Memory Initiatives. however Human security on the other hand shifts the focus from traditional, state-centric notions of security to the protection of individuals. It emphasizes:Freedom from Fear, Freedom from Want and Dignity and Rights. Transitional Justice and Human Security interplay through: 1.Establishing Rule of Law Transitional 2. Restoring Trust 3. Preventing Recurrence 4. Addressing Victims' Needs Challenges Balancing Justice and Peace In some cases, there is tension between the need for justice and the need for peace. For instance, pursuing criminal prosecutions might destabilize a fragile peace process which includes:Resource Constraints, Political Will and Local vs. International Approaches Case Studies Rwanda After the 1994 genocide, Rwanda implemented a combination of international and local justice mechanisms, including the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda (ICTR) and traditional Gacaca courts. These efforts contributed to both justice and human security, though there were criticisms regarding fairness and effectiveness. South Africa The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in South Africa focused on truth-telling and reparations rather than prosecutions. This approach helped to foster reconciliation and social cohesion, contributing to long-term human security, though it left some issues of justice unaddressed. Bosnia and Herzegovina Post-conflict Bosnia faced significant challenges in implementing transitional justice due to ethnic divisions. Efforts included the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and domestic war crimes courts. The process contributed to some degree of justice and security, but ethnic tensions and political instability remain. Conclusion Transitional justice and human security are deeply interconnected in post-conflict societies. Effective transitional justice mechanisms can significantly contribute to human security by addressing the root causes of conflict, ensuring accountability, and fostering reconciliation. However, the implementation of these mechanisms faces numerous challenges that require careful balancing of justice, peace, and practical constraints. Each post-conflict context demands a tailored approach that considers local realities and involves active participation from all stakeholders to achieve sustainable peace and security. Michael dadju Flomo ✍️✍️

💡 The debate on the emoluments of deputies in the DRC is crucial for transparent and responsible governance. Finding a balance with “Fatshimetry” is essential to meet the expectations of the people while recognizing the work of elected officials. 🌍🇨🇩 #DRC #TransparentGovernance #PoliticalDebate

🌐 On 14th May, we organised the "Making People-Centred Justice Happen to Strengthen Democracy and Prosperity: Ensuring Impact and Implementation," a side event of the 33rd Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice(#CCPCJ).   ⚖ In the event, we were delighted to engage in discussions with esteemed panelists from #Malta, #Portugal, #Thailand, Terre des hommes foundation, and UNDP on ongoing efforts and successful stories, sharing insights on people-centred justice and various topics in the justice sector, including justice measurement, justice for children, and the usage of data in the justice sector.   🌟 Here are some key takeaways from the event: 🔸 Systematic capacity-building and adequate staffing of justice sector institutions along with strategically planned government initiatives are critical to the effective delivery of justice services. 🔸 A whole-of-government approach is key for planning and implementing cohesive reforms and ensuring that institutional boundaries do not limit justice. 🔸 Distinctive needs of marginalised groups must be factored into policymaking to secure equitable access to justice for the most vulnerable members of the society. 🔸 The collection of both quantitative and qualitative data is crucial for understanding and responding to the needs of marginalised groups. 🔸 Significant financial investments are indispensable for capacitating justice system institutions to implement people-centred legal and technical solutions. 🔸 Ensuring access to justice in fragile settings and countries with weak rule of law guarantees is particularly challenging and necessitates organising legal aid and awareness-raising initiatives. A huge thanks to all the panelists and participants who joined the event and made it a success. 🙌 We look forward to meeting you at our next events!

When the executive turns into a legislator, a state of creative chaos results, which produces ignorant and corrupt people who take over the reins of a failed state, as is the case in Libya. The transformation of executives into legislators can lead to a state of creative chaos, where personal interests overlap with public interests, which may lead to decisions that serve narrow interests at the expense of the public interest. In Libya, this transformation reflects the state of political and social chaos that the country has been suffering from since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011. The creative chaos in Libya is the result of ill-considered external interventions, where existing structures were dismantled without a clear plan for reconstruction, which led to the emergence of armed groups and the exacerbation of tribal and ideological divisions. This situation led to Libya being classified as a failed state, as it suffers from the absence of an effective central government and the spread of armed militias and foreign interventions. In this context, the statements of the Libyan Minister of Interior about the “morality police” reflect an attempt to impose social control under the pretext of preserving morality, which raises concerns about the future of human rights in the country. These measures, such as the imposition of the mandatory veil and the prevention of mixing, have been widely criticized by human rights organizations and civil society, as they are considered a decline in women's rights and individual freedoms.

"Some politicians aim to rubbish the Constitution and to discredit the Judiciary. Sometimes their criticism at face value (for the reasons above) even has a point. But their objective is not to achieve greater justice for the poor. Rather, they aim to remove the impediments of the law so that well-organised criminal syndicates, which took hold under the Zuma government, can function uninhibited. Their aim is to disable barriers to looting. This overt political agenda is dangerous but it can be identified and countered." "More dangerous are the lawyers, including some advocates, who seek to propel that agenda. Some are skilled liars, dissemblers, manipulators and propagandists. They employ the implements of legal practice to bedevil and confuse and dismay". This is an extract of a speech by former South African Constitutional Court Justice Edwin Cameron on the weaponisation of the law for political ends. These words ring true even in Zambia. I hope the Law Association of Zambia looks into this to preserve the integrity of the legal profession and the judiciary in Zambia.