Transitional Justice Quotes

In 1994, when I went back to Haiti from exile, we established a Commission for Truth and Justice and Reconciliation. I passed the documents to the next government, and I never heard about it again.

Institutions can eventually overcome all the legal barriers erected to shield perpetrators of crimes against humanity Justice was finally done where it needed to be done – in Argentina itself.

The need for peace in Northern Ireland goes well beyond political stability. It now speaks to regional Europe and even global stability.

There's what we did wrong and what we did right. The mistake is that we did some things against the people - by us and also by the enemy - but the other side, as I told you, is that without our struggle there would be no Cambodia right now.

As Serbia continues to move towards rectifying the evils of its past and joining the ranks of democratic nations, it is important that the individuals involved in the death of the Bytyqi brothers are held accountable for their actions[.]

There is an inherent tension between the role of amnesties … and the goal of accountability .... Amnesties encourage ex-combatants to disarm and demobilize, advancing the goal of peace in the short term while doing the least possible harm to the goals of truth, justice, reparation and reform – transitional justice values that are contribute to durable peace in the long term. Some view amnesties as sources of impunity that compromise transitional justice by removing the possibility of criminal accountability. Amnesties covering the most serious crimes may also be seen as undermining victim's rights. In such instances, amnesties can damage public confidence in the rule of law.

Syrians need to prepare for the aftermath if the Assad regime falls. Atrocities that could be considered war crimes have been committed in this country, and Syrians should rightly demand that the perpetrators be held accountable.

There will be no future without forgiveness. Any process of peace is bound to collapse if this is missing. There is no way peace and stability can come through the gun of vengeance.

One of the emphases of the new democratic order is no impunity.

Truth commissions also allow perpetrators to be reintegrated into society and not go back into the bush to pick up their guns again.

The goal of pursuit of justice must not simply be that justice happens but that reconciliation also happens.

Striking a balance between governability and historical reckoning is most difficult during the early years of a democratic transition.

Those who gave the orders, oversaw the killings, and ordered the subsequent cover-up have yet to be arrested and prosecuted.

One of the most perplexing political questions of the late 20th century is how new democracies should punish deposed dictators and their associates. Victims cry for justice, but leaders of new regimes must decide to what extent it is possible, moral or prudent to pursue evildoers of the past.

The difference between political terror and ordinary crime becomes clear during the change of regimes, in which former terrorists become well-regarded representatives of their country.

We have to support truth and reconciliation and some form of justice.

A Colombia without coca and without conflict was an impossible dream just a few years or decades ago, and today I can tell you it is a real possibility. Just imagine it. We have already begun discussion of the last two substantive points: victims and the end of the conflict.

In Serbia's case, the unresolved accountability for the Bytyqi brothers massacre needs to be resolved. And we would urge you to give this matter prompt and immediate attention to bring those responsible to justice for this tragedy.

I have lived with my conscience and my own memories for over quarter of a century since the events of 1973. These are not easy reflections for me. But I am at peace with myself, and with the Chilean people, about what happened. I am clear in my mind that the return to Chile of true democracy, and from that the true freedom to which all individual people are entitled, could not have been achieved without the removal of the Marxist government.

We're not into nation-building. We're into justice.

Where do you draw the line between peace and justice? If you ask the victims, they want more justice; if you ask the potential victims, they want more peace.

I would say as a journalist, I would envision travelling to other countries that have had to reckon with their past and see how they've done it: what worked, what didn't work, finding characters that would tell the story of how that process was done.

On a number of occasions, I have made it clear that Sinn Fein policy was to argue for the establishment of an independent, international truth commission.

Peace cannot come without the engagement of those who have been before. Gen. Dostum will make peace possible. He was engaged in conflict of the past. Forgiveness is an extremely important part of our culture. But, like Rwanda and South Africa, we need to fashion our own solution.

It is unthinkable in the twentieth century to fail to distinguish between what constitutes an abominable atrocity that must be prosecuted and what constitutes that "past" which "ought not to be stirred up.