The Northern region of Uganda has been plagued by violent conflict for over two decades. The Lord¿s Resistance Army (LRA) has been waging war against the current government of Uganda under the leadership of President Museveni. The Acholi community resident in the North of Uganda has been most affected by this war. In recent years however Northern Uganda has enjoyed relative calm following an agreement for the cessation of hostilities between the LRA and the government to allow for peace talks. Following the anticipated end of this conflict, the international community, the government and local organisations have engaged in a number of interventions and mechanisms that would assist in peace building. A fundamental intervention that has been formulated and administered to this end is the Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) programme for the ex-LRA combatants. The DDR process has had the sole objective of enabling formerly abducted children to transform their lives from violence into civility and community. It has been the premise that if this transformation were to occur then societies could be made peaceful. There has been growing support for these programmes but there has been very little analysis done of the utility of these programmes and the consequential impacts that these programmes have on the local indigenous communities. Though well intentioned, there is much work to be done to assess the utility and success of reintegration initiatives in granting the formerly abducted children and local populations¿ lifestyles that are reasonably free from fear and want. / John & Elnora Ferguson Trust

Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) have become a key component of the postconflict peacebuilding orthodoxy. Therefore, this study evaluates the efficacy of Amnesty, Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (ADDR) in conflict prevention and resolution using the 2009 Niger Delta ADDR programme as a case study. The study evaluated the effectiveness of the programme using the minimalist and maximalist framework advanced in the DDR literature. The key findings and conclusions of the Study were that a minimalist DDR would only achieve security stabilisation and return excombatants to the status quo- ante society with all the pre-conflict grievances unaddressed thereby bequeathing a high potential of relapse to violence. Furthermore, for DDR to be an effective conflict prevention and resolution mechanism and postconflict peacebuilding force, its conceptualisation, design and implementation must be maximalist in nature with a transformative agenda that aims to address the roots causes of violence.

Many post-conflict societies, even those which have been free from active conflict for decades, continue to be heavily divided along the same lines on which the conflict was once fought. While active conflict might be a distant memory, the legacy of conflict ensures the group identities which either caused or were borne out of the conflict remain strong. Achieving a situation where a society truly lets go of the anger and resentment that fuels its divisions has proven to be an allusive prospect, however, it’s a goal many post-conflict states continue to reach for. The effort a state uses to try to deconstruct these potentially harmful social identities and to deal with the conflict-related grievances which strengthen them can be loosely understood as post-transitional justice. Part of the reason why effective reconciliation has proven so difficult is that post-transitional justice typically requires societies to reopen old wounds and publicly address challenging memories. Thus, in the context of divided post-conflict societies, post-transitional justice, if not properly implemented, can itself be a divisive procedure and one that risks heightening tensions rather than reducing them. Despite this clear risk, little research has been conducted to understand what factors are likely to make the difficult process of introducing post-transitional justice more or less successful. This thesis addresses this research gap. It uses a social identity approach to examine how socio-political context influences group identification and inter-group behaviour in divided societies and how these behaviours subsequently impact how those groups perceive post-transitional justice mechanisms. This thesis draws on the timely case of Northern Ireland, which is in the process of introducing a wide-reaching post-transitional justice mechanism at a time when the socio-political context has been markedly challenged by Brexit and other socio-political events. Through a mixed methods approach which used both questionnaires and key informant interviews, this thesis demonstrates how the recent socio-political context in Northern Ireland has significantly heightened nationalist and unionist identification with their groups and has concurrently heightened tensions between the two groups. This thesis shows how this environment has subsequently made these groups less likely to accept the terms of the post-transitional justice mechanism, thus limiting its ability to reach its goal of creating an enabling environment for reconciliation, trust, and peacebuilding.

No description available.

Bakgrund: Mänskliga rättigheter har funktionen som en del av skolans värdegrundoch som centralt innehåll i samhällskunskaps- och historieämnet. Tidigare forskningvisar att mänskliga rättigheter förstås och talas om utifrån både sina juridiska,moraliska och politiska aspekter i svenska gymnasieskolan och att tyngdpunktenmellan dessa kan variera kraftigt mellan olika källor som används i undervisningen.Dock har ingen direkt jämförelse gjorts mellan läroböcker i samhällskunskap ochmänniskorättsorganisationers skolmaterial. Syfte: Uppsatsens syfte är att jämföra likheter och skillnader mellan hur läromaterialfrån en människorättsorganisation och en samhällskunskapsbok för gymnasieskolanpresenterar begreppet mänskliga rättigheter. Metod:Uppsatsen har använt sig av en jämförande idealtypsanalys där Amnestyselevportal och samhällskunskapsboken Arena 123 studerats utifrån ett på förhanddefinierade idealtyper relaterat till mänskliga rättigheter samt jämförts med varandra. Resultat: Amnestys elevportal och Arena 123 uppvisar likheter vad gäller betoningpå att staten är den primära skyldighetsbäraren i att garantera mänskliga rättigheter.Amnestys elevportal och Arena 123 skiljer sig åt på primärt tre områden. Det förstaområdet är att Amnestys elevportal beskriver mänskliga rättigheters moraliska grundsom konstant och oföränderlig och att Arena 123 beskriver mänskliga rättigheter somett resultat av samhälleliga diskussioner samt att rättigheterna beskrivs förändrasmed tiden. Det andra området är att Amnestys elevportal benämner abort ochHBTQI-rättigheter som mänskliga rättigheter utan att de är definierade som sådana iFN:s deklarationer eller konventioner. Arena 123 benämner ingenting som inte ärdefinierat i en FN-deklaration eller FN-konvention som en mänsklig rättighet. Dentredje betydande skillnaden mellan dem är att Amnestys elevportal beskriver utförligtoch detaljerad hur en individ kan utkräva sina mänskliga rättigheter med juridiska ochutomjuridiska medel. Arena 123 beskriver inte hur individen kan utkräva sinamänskliga rättigheter.

This thesis examines the status of amnesties and the duty to prosecute gross and systematic human rights violations in international law. The thesis begins by distinguishing amnesty from other related concepts, such as impunity, pardon and statutes of limitations and so on. Unlike these related concepts, amnesty aims to address major social or political crises in society, such as to resolve an armed conflict, allow the return of political refugees or bring about peaceful political transition. Amnesty is linked to the duty to prosecute, because it is so often in direct conflict with international law norms and standards on the duty to prosecute and to compensate victims of human rights violations. Before the First World War, amnesty was a well-established customary practice. Even where a peace treaty was silent on the mater, amnesty was implied. Compensation was also part of the regime of peace treaties, but not followed as consistently as amnesty. This practice changed dramatically after the First and Second World Wars, because, in a break with the past, the victors did not consider themselves to be on the same level as the vanquished. This resulted in the abolition of the traditional practice of granting amnesty and the demand rather that those responsible for aggression be prosecuted and compelled to pay compensation, as was the case with Germany. Since 1948, with the adoption of the United Nations' Charter, and other international human rights treaties, the power of states to grant amnesty gradually became constrained by the obligation to prosecute perpetrators of gross human rights violations and to pay compensation to the victims of war crimes. Nevertheless, this phenomenon did not put an end to the practice of states granting amnesty for gross human rights violations. Internal armed conflicts during and after the end of the Cold War, with no victors and no vanquished, made amnesty an inevitable option. A considerable number of states continue to utilise amnesty as a device for peace and reconciliation, and they have granted amnesty for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. In customary international law, there is a gap between the actual state practice and the existence of the customary norm creating a duty to prosecute. As a result, the status of the so-called "palatable amnesties" (à la South Africa), often granted as part of a truth and reconciliation process, still remains unclear in international law. This is further exacerbated by the inconsistent practice of the United Nations as the main depository and sponsor of human rights instruments. South Africa and Sierra Leone are used as case studies to illustrate this inconsistency in both state and UN practice on the status of amnesties in international law. As a result, the study proposes a balanced approach model, which is an attempt to strike a balance between accountability, political transformation and social stability in transitional democracies. The balanced approach model proceeds from the premise that the international criminal justice system is not flawless and, therefore, it is important to acknowledge its limitations, such as the lack of enforcement agencies, difficulties in the collection of reliable evidence and a lack of resources to prosecute. In terms of the model, consideration is given to (i) the need to respect the legitimacy of the political process that gives rise to the granting of amnesty; (ii) the amnesty must be proportional to the crimes committed and must be rationally connected to the aims of achieving peace and national reconciliation, the interests of justice, compensation for victims; and finally (iii) the general commitment of the state that grants amnesty to respect international law obligations, which includes the implementation of international obligations as part of municipal law and treaty monitoring obligations as preconditions for the amnesty to pass muster in the balanced approach model. In conclusion, the study proposes model Policy Guidelines on Amnesties Granted for Gross and Systematic Human Rights Violations in International Law for the Assembly of States of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to take note of, and to commend to states and international courts and tribunals, leaving its content to be taken up in the normal processes of the application and development of international law. The status of the Guidelines is that of a code of conduct or guide to practice. In that sense, the Guidelines do not have the character of a binding legal instrument and will serve as the basis for the development of sound principles of international law on amnesties. / Constitutional and International Law / L.LD

This thesis examines the status of amnesties and the duty to prosecute gross and systematic human rights violations in international law. The thesis begins by distinguishing amnesty from other related concepts, such as impunity, pardon and statutes of limitations and so on. Unlike these related concepts, amnesty aims to address major social or political crises in society, such as to resolve an armed conflict, allow the return of political refugees or bring about peaceful political transition. Amnesty is linked to the duty to prosecute, because it is so often in direct conflict with international law norms and standards on the duty to prosecute and to compensate victims of human rights violations. Before the First World War, amnesty was a well-established customary practice. Even where a peace treaty was silent on the mater, amnesty was implied. Compensation was also part of the regime of peace treaties, but not followed as consistently as amnesty. This practice changed dramatically after the First and Second World Wars, because, in a break with the past, the victors did not consider themselves to be on the same level as the vanquished. This resulted in the abolition of the traditional practice of granting amnesty and the demand rather that those responsible for aggression be prosecuted and compelled to pay compensation, as was the case with Germany. Since 1948, with the adoption of the United Nations' Charter, and other international human rights treaties, the power of states to grant amnesty gradually became constrained by the obligation to prosecute perpetrators of gross human rights violations and to pay compensation to the victims of war crimes. Nevertheless, this phenomenon did not put an end to the practice of states granting amnesty for gross human rights violations. Internal armed conflicts during and after the end of the Cold War, with no victors and no vanquished, made amnesty an inevitable option. A considerable number of states continue to utilise amnesty as a device for peace and reconciliation, and they have granted amnesty for war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. In customary international law, there is a gap between the actual state practice and the existence of the customary norm creating a duty to prosecute. As a result, the status of the so-called "palatable amnesties" (à la South Africa), often granted as part of a truth and reconciliation process, still remains unclear in international law. This is further exacerbated by the inconsistent practice of the United Nations as the main depository and sponsor of human rights instruments. South Africa and Sierra Leone are used as case studies to illustrate this inconsistency in both state and UN practice on the status of amnesties in international law. As a result, the study proposes a balanced approach model, which is an attempt to strike a balance between accountability, political transformation and social stability in transitional democracies. The balanced approach model proceeds from the premise that the international criminal justice system is not flawless and, therefore, it is important to acknowledge its limitations, such as the lack of enforcement agencies, difficulties in the collection of reliable evidence and a lack of resources to prosecute. In terms of the model, consideration is given to (i) the need to respect the legitimacy of the political process that gives rise to the granting of amnesty; (ii) the amnesty must be proportional to the crimes committed and must be rationally connected to the aims of achieving peace and national reconciliation, the interests of justice, compensation for victims; and finally (iii) the general commitment of the state that grants amnesty to respect international law obligations, which includes the implementation of international obligations as part of municipal law and treaty monitoring obligations as preconditions for the amnesty to pass muster in the balanced approach model. In conclusion, the study proposes model Policy Guidelines on Amnesties Granted for Gross and Systematic Human Rights Violations in International Law for the Assembly of States of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to take note of, and to commend to states and international courts and tribunals, leaving its content to be taken up in the normal processes of the application and development of international law. The status of the Guidelines is that of a code of conduct or guide to practice. In that sense, the Guidelines do not have the character of a binding legal instrument and will serve as the basis for the development of sound principles of international law on amnesties. / Constitutional and International Law / L.LD

This dissertation intends to analyse the practice of amnesties in the context of grave human rights violations using northern Uganda as a case study. It also examines its consistency with the obligation upon states to protect human rights through the prosecution of perpetrators of the said violations. It will, accordingly, analyse the implications of the complementary mandate of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to national jurisdictions. Furthermore, the author also explores the tension which results from national amnesties and the principle of international criminal responsibility, a principle that the ICC has the mandate to enforce. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2007. / A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Dr Ben Kiromba Twinomugisha of the Faculty of Law, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

La construction de la paix en matière de sortie de crise admet l‟importance du rôle de la mémoire comme en témoigne la montée en puissance des politiques de la mémoire à qui incombe l‟apaisement de la mémoire collective d‟une société dans la résolution des conflits et le changement de régime politique. Cette entreprise reste assujettie à la connaissance ou non des violations graves des droits de l‟homme, à la réparation matérielle et symbolique à l‟égard des victimes en quête de reconnaissance ainsi qu‟à la réécriture de l‟histoire dans le but de changer les stéréotypes à l‟origine d‟une conflictualité à dominante communautaire.Du fait de l‟absence d‟un système judiciaire indépendant et d‟un État en position de tiers, les politiques de la mémoire initiées dans la résolution des crises congolaises tendent plutôt à légitimer un régime politique autoritaire au lieu de promouvoir la réconciliation. La constitutionnalisation de la paix, les mises en cause limitées des criminels de guerre et le déficit de « congolité » révèlent les lacunes de ces politiques et les constantes des politiques du pardon engagées sur la scène internationale.Dans cette optique, l‟édification d‟une paix positive différente d‟un simple arrêt des hostilités appelle l‟instauration d‟une corrélation entre le pardon et la justice dans une quête d‟accountability. Une telle approche requiert une attitude nouvelle à même de favoriser la mutation des conduites négatives en postures rationnelles afin d‟oublier les avanies du passé et de promouvoir un nouveau vivre en commun novateur. À ce titre, la réussite des politiques de la mémoire reste inséparable de la promotion graduelle d‟un projet commun entre les anciens belligérants. Si la mise en place de mécanismes de résolution des conflits futurs apparaît comme un facteur majeur, toute sortie de crise reste partielle quand elle n‟est pas affiliée à un processus de réconciliation. / Building peace following a conflict reveals the importance of the role of the memory as witnessed by the increased importance of the memory policies witch are responsible of conflicts and the change of political regimes. This undertaking remains subject to the knowledge, or lack of it, of the serious violations of the rights of man, and the material and symbolic redress for victims seeking recognition as well as the rewriting of history with the aim of changing stereotypes at the origin of conflicts within a particular community.Given the absence of an independent judicial system and a third party State, the memory policies initiated in the resolution of Congolese conflicts tend towards legitimizing an authoritarian political regime rather than promoting reconciliation. The constitutionalizing of peace, the limited accusation of war criminals and the deficit of “congolité” reveals the inadequacy of these policies, and the continuance of the international pardon policies.In light of this, the edification of a positive peace that differs from a simple cessation of the hostilities requires the establishment of a correlation between forgiveness and justice in a quest for accountability. This approach calls for a fresh attitude capable of favouring the transformation of the negative behaviours into rational positions with the aim of forgetting past outrages in order to work toward promoting a new innovative communal life. If the establishment of the future resolution mechanisms appear to be a major factor, any withdrawal from a crisis remains partial when not associated with a process of reconciliation.

O objetivo deste estudo é debater a argumentação desenvolvida pela Corte Interamericana de Direitos Humanos relativamente ao contexto de transição política na América Latina. Em quatro casos envolvendo violações de direitos perpetradas no Brasil, no Chile, no Peru e no Uruguai por regimes autoritários, a corte determinou a incompatibilidade entre as legislações de anistias adotadas por esses países e os dispositivos da Convenção Americana de Direitos Humanos. Para além de almejar definir a natureza ou o conteúdo de uma possível obrigação internacional de julgar violações de direitos humanos, este estudo analisará o posicionamento da corte enquanto resultado de uma atividade interpretativa que favorece uma determinada maneira de lidar com situações de mudança de regime político e violações. Ou seja, enquanto discurso que reflete uma posição particular do órgão, mas que é apresentado como algo universal. Diversamente do entendimento da corte, o argumento central deste trabalho consiste em afirmar que, em contextos envolvendo mudança de regime e violações de direitos, tanto anistias quanto julgamentos podem ser alternativas justificadas com base em uma perspectiva de direitos humanos. Nesse sentido, não seria possível apontar em abstrato uma ou outra alternativa como a mais adequada, sob pena de adoção de uma preferência ideológica. Em virtude da indeterminação do discurso de direitos humanos, diversas soluções jurídicas podem ser articuladas com o objetivo de promover uma transição política pacífica e a opção pela melhor estratégia só pode ser alcançada contextualmente. / This dissertation aims at debating the Inter-American Court of Human Rights reasoning regarding the context of political transition in Latin America. In four cases involving human rights violations perpetrated in Brazil, Chile, Peru and Uruguay by authoritarian regimes, the court has determined that national amnesty laws lack legal effects. With no intention to define the nature or content of a duty to punish in international law, this study will analyse the courts reasoning as a result of an interpretive activity that favours a certain way of dealing with political transitions and human rights violations. That is, a discourse that reflects a particular position of the organ, but is presented as something universal. Differently from the courts approach, the main argument discussed herein is that amnesties and trials can both be justified from a human rights perspective in contexts of regime change and human rights violations. In this setting, it is not possible to indicate a priori one alternative or another as the adequate one without showing an ideological preference. In view of the idea of the indeterminacy of rights, different legal solutions can be articulated to promote a peaceful political transition, and the relative usefulness of one solution can only be determined contextually.