Transitional Justice

Building data-driven strategies in conflict management, peacebuilding, and atrocity prevention.

 

What is Transitional Justice?
Transitional justice mechanisms are institutions—normally temporary—that are established to provide accountability for core international crimes such as genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes, including acts of political violence against civilians. These mechanisms include measures such as prosecution, truth commissions, and reparations. Transitional justice accountability is the opposite of impunity. 

Transitional Justice Program
Over the years, transitional justice has become a key component of international efforts to engage in conflict management, peacebuilding, and atrocity prevention, in order to address the complex and wide-ranging needs of survivors. Yet we still do not know how effective these mechanisms are, especially in fragile states. 

The Carr Center’s Transitional Justice Program will develop research and generate data, including the production of a Justice and Accountability index. The findings will be made accessible to a global audience, enabling those in communities that have experienced mass atrocities to more effectively clarify and respond to the needs of survivors. The project, while global in scope, also will focus on a series of case studies within ten post-authoritarian and conflict countries. 

Only once we have data on the effectiveness of transitional justice, can we truly begin to support survivors and give policymakers a clearer understanding of what measures can be taken to prevent future violence.

Leadership
This program is led by Kathryn Sikkink, the Ryan Family Professor at the Harvard Kennedy School, with the partnership of Dara Cohen (Assistant Professor of Political Science; HKS), Phuong Pham and Patrick Vinck (Assistant Professors in the Department of Global Health and Population; Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health), and Geoff Dancy (Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science; Tulane University).

World map of case study locations, including Cambodia, Central African Republic, Colombia, Cote d’Ivoire, Guatemala, Iraq, Mali, Sri Lanka, Haiti, and Myanmar

 

News and Announcements