A Way Out of Violent Conflict? The Impact of Transitional Justice Mechanisms on Peacebuilding

Project Team: Elin Skaar (project leader), Camilla Gianella, Trine Eide, Natalia Flórez Mejía

Timeframe: 04/01/2010 - 12/01/2010

Transitional justice mechanisms such as criminal trials and truth commissions have increasingly been adopted in the aftermath of violent conflict, and are generally considered vital to peacebuilding. Yet we know very little about the actual impact of such strategies on the societies concerned. This project has two aims: (i) to develop an analytical framework useful for policy assessments of the impact of various transitional justice mechanisms on violence reduction and peacebuilding more generally, and (ii) through applying this theoretical framework to four case studies (Peru, Uruguay, Rwanda and Angola) assess how different approaches to transitional justice – including the absence of such mechanisms – have affected peacebuilding in the aftermath of violent conflict.

http://www.cmi.no/research/project/?1364=a-way-out-of-violent-conflict