The Hekima Institute of Peace Studies and International Relations (HIPSIR) has just released their report from the International Conference on Transitional Justice in Post-Conflict Societies in Africa that was held October 2014. The published report and photos from the conference feature the diversity of the participants and of the perspectives given on transitional justice in Africa.
In addition to a summary of the presentations, the report offers policy recommendations to governmental, civil society, and academic actors, including integrating studies of peace and reconciliation in schools, incorporating gender as part of the justice process, disseminating shared knowledge and lessons learned at all levels of the process to all stakeholders, and involving community leaders and religious groups as part of formal peacebuilding processes.
As important as these suggestions are, what is important is the details of their enactment, whether the spirit of the recommendations are followed—what is called in the report “restorative justice”—instead of merely boxes to tick.
We will soon be posting a case study from Kenya by Jackie Ogega, which illustrates how to incorporate many of the Hekima conference’s recommendations into peacebuilding practice.