Geneva Academy
21 May 2019
During three days, students of our Master of Advanced Studies in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law (MTJ) immersed, via a practical exercise and in the context of the 2019 Spring School, in the design and establishment of a truth commission to address past human rights abuses.
Under the guidance of Howard Varney, a leading expert on the issue, they took up the roles of different stakeholders – including international and local NGOs, the United Nations and the African Union and the national government – involved in the process of designing and formulating the mandate of a truth commission in the context of a post-conflict truth-telling process involving local, regional, nationals and international actors.
‘Students had to work on a complex fictive scenario that involved a multitude of human rights violations committed by state and non-state actors in the context of a prolonged ethnic conflict ’ explains Frank Haldemann, Co-Director of the MTJ.
The Spring School provided an opportunity for students to work productively together during three days, share rich experiences and knowledge, and gain a more practical perspective of truth commissions as a central transitional justice ‘mechanism’.
‘During three days, students learnt to ‘apply’ their theoretical knowledge of truth commissions to a practical case by working in groups on very concrete problems relevant to truth commissions’ mandates and by adopting various actors’ perspectives’ underlines Thomas Unger, Co-Director of the MTJ.
‘We were impressed by the great team spirit and motivation, as well as by the high level of argumentation and engagement of the participants’ he adds.
As a Programme Officer at the UN Women Centre of Excellence for Gender Equality, Claire An forms part of a team focussing on ending violence against women and implements research programmes that measure femicide and technology-facilitated violence against women. In this interview, she tells about the programme, fond memories and what it brought to her career.
As an Advocacy Officer at the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims, Maeva Réné-Barry advocates for institutional changes at international and regional levels and conducts field missions to gather victim testimonies. In this interview, she tells about the programme, fond memories and what it brought to her career.