. Thesis Paragraph Sentence: A. Area of conflict: The efforts of the Colombian government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) to end their 52 year old civil war that has caused the death of more than 260,000 people. The Colombians need to develop a system that comprehensively investigates the crimes committed during the war and that allows for reconciliation, and the eventual, peaceful advancement of the nation’s development. B. A Colombian Truth and Reconciliation Commission, fitted to the nation’s unique circumstances, can help investigate the country’s violent past, placing victims at the center of the conflict resolution and ensuring the opposition’s ability to reconcile its differences and move forward in a more unified manner that allows for the peaceful …show more content…
During a time of significant change and transition, Truth and Reconciliation Commissions address a harmful past so that the nation can move towards a better future. i. Priscilla Hayner, Unspeakable Truths: Facing the Challenge of Truth Commissions (Routledge: New York, 2002). ii. Onur Bakiner, Truth Commissions: Memory, Power, and Legitimacy (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2016). iii. Onur Bakiner, “Truth Commission Impact: An Assessment of How Commissions Influence Politics and Society,” Transit Justice 8, No. 1 (2014): 6-30. B. There have been various Truth and Reconciliation commissions throughout history. While each is unique to the country, there are certain common goals and problems associated with the general system. Further analysis of Truth and Reconciliation Commissions reveals different causes and results throughout the world. i. Priscilla Hayner, “Fifteen Truth Commissions—1974 to 1994: A Comparative Study,” Human Rights Quarterly 16, No. 4 (1994): 597-655. ii. Deborah Posel and Graeme Simpson, Commissioning the Past: Understanding South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (University of Michigan: Witwatersrand University Press,
Maidment, M. (2009). When justice is a game: Unravelling wrongful convictions in Canada. Canada: Fernwood Publishing.
Gates, Bill., "Why the Justice Department Is Wrong," The Wall Street Journal, November 10, 1997, p. A22.
In light of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s (TRC) calls to actions (Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada 2015:8–9), this project is a timely one.
Magleby, David B. "The Judiciary." Government by the Peopl. 2011 ed. Boston: Pearson, 2011. 378-90. Print.
Republic of Colombia Constitutional Court, Sentence # c-239/97, Ref. Expedient # D-1490, May 20, 1997.
Stewart, M. (2011). The space between the steps: reckoning in an area of reconciliation. Contemporary Justice Review, 14(1), 43-63. Retrieved from http://www.informaworld.com/smpp/content~db=all?content=10.1080/10282580.2011.541076
The United States Department of Justice and all inferior law enforcement agencies that is umbrella under this hierarchy is not exempt from conflict. Conflict management derives from historical events that have altered the current perception of conflict management and proposes a resolution method for many areas within the justice system. The conflict model is a primary example of the easiest forms of theoretical approaches to conflict management. Additional examples would include that of the consensus perceptive, the pluralist perspective, conflict perspective and restorative justice theories. Although each provides a certain field within the justice system with a more comprehensive approach, not all are equally beneficial in all areas. It is inevitable that the association of conflict is derived from societal change and perception plus approaches are manipulated accordingly as situations evolve.
...n’s people because of the genocide and enslavement perpetrated against their ancestors. This action has manifested in the July 2013 decision of the Heads of Government to request all member states to convene a national reparations committee to report to CARICOM Reparations Commission (CRC), which was constituted at the First Regional conference on Reparations held in September 2013, culminating, for now, with the approval, in March 2014, of a 10-point plan for negotiations on reparations with former European colonial powers. All of this achieved within one year of the publication of the text under review here, the author of which is none other than the distinguished chairman of the CRC. A formal complaint to the Europeans nations is expected by the end of April, 2014 and if rejected, plans are afoot to seek legal redress through the International Court of Justice.
Ballenstedt, B. (2008, May 1). :FEATURES: :Imperfect Justice (5/1/08) -- GovExec.com. Retrieved August 1, 2010, from Government Executive.com: http://www.govexec.com/features/0508-01/0508-01s3.htm
Spence, L., & Navarro, V. (2011). Crafting truth: Documentary form and meaning. New Brunswick, N.J: Rutgers University Press.
The third source that I will be using for my paper is by Mark R Amstutz. In this book he describes in great detail about transitional justice, political forgiveness, and cases in different countries, mainly Argentina, Chile, Northern Ireland, and South Africa. He especially dedicated chapters on retributive justice and the limits of forgiveness in Argentina, and the quest for reconciliation through truth telling in Chile. He argues that forgiveness is an essential part of politics when dealing with the collective wrongdoing of military regime and believes that a combination knowing the truth, victims getting an public apology, repentance and compensation and ultimately forgiveness and the lifting of deserved penalties will bring reconciliation
Unlike previous forms of reconciliation that focussed only on direct and immediate aid, the Truth and Reconciliation Commision had a long term goal in mind - to “repair the relationship” (Radio-Canada, 2015) that had so been strained. The first to take form was the final report submitted to the federal government - a detailed account, spanning nearly 4,000 pages, of what happened to indigenous children. The stories had such emotional depth that “each and every one of us who listened to them would go home at the end of each day and we would hold our children, our grandchildren, closer as we proceeded”, as Justice Murray Sinclair describes (Radio-Canada, 2015). Most significantly in this large scale project was the “publication of ninety-four "calls to action" urging all levels of government — federal, provincial, territorial and aboriginal — to work together to change policies and … move forward with reconciliation” (CBC, 2015). With the calls in place, the Truth and Reconciliation seemed to set out to own the stories and experiences of Indigenous people as a method of education and awareness. With calls to further child welfare, education, language and culture, the ninety-four recommendations have been in action since the early 2010s,
Furgurson, Ernest B. "Moment Of Truth." American History 48.4 (2013): 64-68. History Reference Center. Web. 6 May 2014.
Colombia has been at war for over 50 years between the government and guerrilla groups. Guerrillas started as a group of rebels who were against the corrupted government. At the begging they were not much of threat because their political views were seen as exaggerated. Little by little insurgents started to gain power especially when they joined the drug cartels. On November 6, 1985, the impossible became possible. A small group of guerrillas attacked The Palace of Justice killing half of the Colombia´s Supreme Court judges. This marked the beginning of a new era in terrorism in Colombia. After this incident the country was not the same, people felt vulnerable and the government didn´t provide any security to their citizens. This touched my family too; insurgents took away our farm which was our only way of income. The farm was a very especial place for us not only
This paper henceforth draws closed the argument that The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was in fact an opportunity for those who were done in during the apartheid era to take from the past and build on it in order to locate their place in the post-apartheid South Africa which became a country for citizens to feel they belong.