African Truth Commissions and Transitional Justice

by John Perry, T. Debey Sayndee

Overview

African Truth Commissions and Transitional Justice examines the functioning of truth commissions in Africa, outlining the lessons learned, the best practices, and the successes and failures of seven African truth commissions. Its introduction and conclusion then work further to place truth commissions within the growing academic field of transitional justice. The first African truth commission was convened by the despot Idi Amin for reasons unrelated to the defense of human rights, but despite this ambiguous beginning, other African truth commissions have done important work. The South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission of 1996 has become the ‘gold standard’ for future truth commissions not only in Africa, but throughout the world: it unearthed much truth about the Apartheid era abuse of human rights and took vital first steps towards restorative justice in the Republic. Each truth commission is distinctive. However, although much has been written about South Africa’s truth commissions, much less is known about the other six studied in this book—and an attentive reader will notice the suggestive patterns which emerge.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781498504089
Publisher:	Lexington Books
Publication date:	04/22/2015
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	120
File size:	619 KB

About the Author

John Perry, SJ, is a Canadian academic who has been a volunteer working at the Kofi Annan Institute for Conflict Transformation at the University of Liberia since 2008.

T. Debey Sayndee is associate professor and director at the Kofi Annan Institute for Conflict Transformation (KAICT) at the University of Liberia.

Table of Contents

Introduction
Chapter One: Liberia’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission
Chapter Two: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa
Chapter Three: The Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Sierra Leone
Chapter Four: The National Human Rights Commission of Ghana
Chapter Five: The National Human Rights Commission and the Human Rights Violations Commission of Nigeria
Chapter Six: Chad: Africa’s Second Truth Commission
Chapter Seven: The Equity and Reconciliation Commission of Morocco Conclusion
Conclusion

Editorial Reviews

John Perry and T. Debey Sayndee have written a comprehensive analysis of the evolution and dynamics of transitional justice, in particular, the use of truth commissions as instruments of fact-finding and reconciliation of bitterly divided communities in the aftermath of political conflicts and monstrous dictatorships in different parts of the world. This book presents well-researched and highly informative case studies using the truth commissions that have been established in selected African countries—Liberia, South Africa, Sierra Leone, Ghana, Nigeria, Chad, and Morocco. This book is a must read for all students and practitioners of transitional justice, post-conflict reconstruction, and peacebuilding in Africa and other regions of the world.

Kenneth Omeje

TRC’s are a world wide phenomenon stretching from South Africa, Sierra Leone, and El Salvador to Timor-Leste. Dr. Imani Michelle Scott and her colleagues have even recently proposed a TRC for the United States (Crimes Against Humanity, Praeger). John Perry and Debey Sayndee do a wonderful job of outlining the importance of the TRCs for post peace accord peacebuilding as well as their strengths and limitations. African Truth Commissions and Transitional Justice is an important read for transitional justice scholars and students as well as international policymakers, IG's, and NG's tasked with rebuilding the fabric of broken societies so that ethnopolitical groups often historically locked in a fatal embrace can heal, reconcile, move on, and coexist.

Sean Byrne