Transitional Justice, Culture, and Society – Beyond Outreach

Clara Ramirez-Barat is a senior associate in the Research Unit at ICTJ. She is the recipient of an MA in philosophy from Columbia University and a PhD in philosophy from the University Carlos III of Madrid. For the past ten years, her research has focused on different aspects of transitional justice and democratic theory.

The book addresses a long-standing gap in transitional justice between institutional interventions and the need to recognize and support the mechanisms of human interaction-what happens between people and between communities and the structures established to maintain them. This unique collection of essays addresses the breadth of communicative mechanisms-from traditional media to new media and from art to film to photography to literature. The beautifully crafted chapters bring alive the multidimensional nature of social engagement and describe how these societal processes can maim and destroy as well as contribute to survival and healing. This collection is the first in the transitional justice literature to recognize the need to move beyond top-down 'outreach' programs to support two-way communication in its multiple forms and to recognize that societies rebuild by utilizing social, psychological, historical, and cultural pathways that strengthen their commitment to change. The strength of this book lies in its attention to multiple forms of creation and its appreciation of societal energies in responding to the past and addressing the future. -- Harvey M. Weinstein, Human Rights Center, University of California, Berkeley The contributors examine various forms of outreach attempted after a transition-from official press releases to participatory theater to Sesame Street-to sort through what has and has not worked and why. Together, these pieces make a powerful argument that efforts to deal with the past will fail unless they are connected to society. -- Tina Rosenberg, author of The Haunted Land: Facing Europe's Ghosts After Communism

• Preface On Making the Invisible Visible: The Role of Cultural Interventions in Transitional Justice Processes Pablo de GreiffIntroduction Transitional Justice and the Public Sphere Clara Ramirez-Barat Part One: Outreach in Transitional JusticeChapter 1 Implementing an Engagement Model: Outreach at the Special Court for Sierra Leone Maya KarwandeChapter 2 Making Justice Visible: Bosnia and Herzegovina's Domestic War Crimes Trials Outreach Stephanie A. BarbourChapter 3 Reaching Out to Victims and Communities: The CAVR's Experiences in Timor-Leste Patrick Burgess and Galuh WanditaChapter 4 Between Protection and Participation: Involving Children and Youth in Transitional Justice Processes Virginie Ladisch and Clara Ramirez-BaratPart Two: Conflict, Media, and JusticeChapter 5 Democratization of Media in Post-Conflict Situations: Reporting on ICTY War Crimes Trials in Serbia Nidzara Ahmetasevic and Tanja MaticChapter 6 The Uses and Abuses of Media: Rwanda before and after the Genocide Timothy LongmanChapter 7 The Media's Potential in Developing Social Awareness for Justice: The Example of Interactive Radio for Justice Wanda E. HallChapter 8 Using Media to Foster Mutual Respect and Understanding among Children in a Post-Conflict Region: The Rruga Sesam/Ulica Sezam in Kosovo Charlotte F. Cole and June H. LeeChapter 9 "Friend" of the Court: New Media and Transitional Justice Camille CrittendenPart Three: Art, Culture, and Transitional JusticeChapter 10 From Tears to Energy: Early Uses of Participatory Theater in Afghanistan Nadia Siddiqui and Hjalmar Jorge Joffre-EichhornChapter 11 Reverberations of Testimony: South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Art and Media Catherine M. ColeChapter 12 Photography and Transitional Justice: Evidence, Postcard, Placard, Token of Absence Eduardo Gonzalez Cueva and M. Florencia LibrizziChapter 13 Visions of Justice and Accountability: Transitional Justice and Film Carolyn Patty BlumChapter 14 Memoryworks/Memory Works Louis BickfordChapter 15 Literature and Experiences of Harm Carlos Thiebaut Luis-AndreContributors