The Impact of Transitional Justice on Human Rights and Democracy
Lead Research Organisation:
University of Oxford
Department Name: Sociology
Abstract
The proposed AHRC-NSF Collaborative Funding Opportunity between Leigh Payne (University of Oxford) and Kathryn Sikkink (University of Minnesota) aims to develop an empirically-tested theory of transitional justice (i.e., human rights trials, truth commissions, and amnesties) to explain its impact on human rights and democracy. It also strives to develop a corresponding set of policy recommendations to achieve those political goals.
The collaborators' prior research qualifies them for this project. Each has published widely on violence, human rights, and democratization. They recently formed separate research teams to develop large-N, cross-national data bases on transitional justice mechanisms. Both teams confirmed for the first time that transitional justice has a positive impact on human rights and democracy. Contradictory findings from their research, however, have motivated them to collaborate to develop a new project that further improves understanding of transitional justice.
The proposed project will construct a new data set that merges their existing data, adds newly collected and refined data on transitional justice mechanisms, and employs a mixed-method approach to explain the success of transitional justice in achieving its political objectives.
Quantitative research, utilizing propensity scores and matching techniques, will allow the researchers to make inferences from the large-N data set while qualitative research, specifically fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fs QCA), process-tracing, and the case study method, enables the team to identify combinations of conditions and/or multiple causal pathways for positive or negative effects on democracy and human rights.
Intellectual Merit.
The proposed project will build the first empirically-tested theory of when, why, and how transitional justice achieves human rights and democracy goals. It will derive and test assumptions from four theoretical approaches: enforcement and deterrence, norms and socialization, rule of law, and accountability with stability. The first three focus on the role of trials in bringing positive political change, a mechanism identified by both research teams as crucial to transitional justice success.
The fourth approach examines how combinations of mechanisms (i.e., trials and amnesties or trials, amnesties, and truth commissions), findings from Payne research, achieve these positive results. Based on these theoretical approaches and previous findings, the collaborative team has created a research design that will allow them to make an important theoretical contribution to the study of transitional justice, human rights, and democratization. They will present their findings at international scholarly conferences and publish scholarly articles to advance academic debate in an under-theorised field.
Broader Impacts.
First, the study will advance transitional justice policy. The project identifies the specific types and combinations of mechanisms and contextual factors (i.e., political and economic conditions, judicial institutions, and political agency) that enhance the likelihood of success of transitional justice.
The researchers will produce a policy blueprint and present their findings to policy-makers at conferences and meetings, disseminate them to relevant organisations, and make them publicly available on their website.
The collaborative project emerges from a creative method for resolving contradictory findings in the researchers' previous work. Rather than using their different findings to carve out separate and competing projects, the researchers have chosen to collaborate to achieve important theoretical and policy goals.
Second, the collaborators will build an institutional partnership between the Oxford Transitional Justice Research program and the University of Minnesota's Transitional Justice Research Collaborative, in which both researchers play leading roles, to maintain the data set and encourage future research initiatives.
Third, the project includes training and professionalization dimensions. The original members of the research teams will remain involved in the collaboration as consultants, contributing and enhancing their skills, and co-authoring scholarly papers. The advanced quantitative (e.g., propensity scores, matching techniques) and qualitative (e.g., fs QCA, process-tracing, case study) methodologies incorporated into this joint project provide new training for the consultants and the new Oxford and Minnesota graduate student members of the research teams.
The collaborators' prior research qualifies them for this project. Each has published widely on violence, human rights, and democratization. They recently formed separate research teams to develop large-N, cross-national data bases on transitional justice mechanisms. Both teams confirmed for the first time that transitional justice has a positive impact on human rights and democracy. Contradictory findings from their research, however, have motivated them to collaborate to develop a new project that further improves understanding of transitional justice.
The proposed project will construct a new data set that merges their existing data, adds newly collected and refined data on transitional justice mechanisms, and employs a mixed-method approach to explain the success of transitional justice in achieving its political objectives.
Quantitative research, utilizing propensity scores and matching techniques, will allow the researchers to make inferences from the large-N data set while qualitative research, specifically fuzzy set qualitative comparative analysis (fs QCA), process-tracing, and the case study method, enables the team to identify combinations of conditions and/or multiple causal pathways for positive or negative effects on democracy and human rights.
Intellectual Merit.
The proposed project will build the first empirically-tested theory of when, why, and how transitional justice achieves human rights and democracy goals. It will derive and test assumptions from four theoretical approaches: enforcement and deterrence, norms and socialization, rule of law, and accountability with stability. The first three focus on the role of trials in bringing positive political change, a mechanism identified by both research teams as crucial to transitional justice success.
The fourth approach examines how combinations of mechanisms (i.e., trials and amnesties or trials, amnesties, and truth commissions), findings from Payne research, achieve these positive results. Based on these theoretical approaches and previous findings, the collaborative team has created a research design that will allow them to make an important theoretical contribution to the study of transitional justice, human rights, and democratization. They will present their findings at international scholarly conferences and publish scholarly articles to advance academic debate in an under-theorised field.
Broader Impacts.
First, the study will advance transitional justice policy. The project identifies the specific types and combinations of mechanisms and contextual factors (i.e., political and economic conditions, judicial institutions, and political agency) that enhance the likelihood of success of transitional justice.
The researchers will produce a policy blueprint and present their findings to policy-makers at conferences and meetings, disseminate them to relevant organisations, and make them publicly available on their website.
The collaborative project emerges from a creative method for resolving contradictory findings in the researchers' previous work. Rather than using their different findings to carve out separate and competing projects, the researchers have chosen to collaborate to achieve important theoretical and policy goals.
Second, the collaborators will build an institutional partnership between the Oxford Transitional Justice Research program and the University of Minnesota's Transitional Justice Research Collaborative, in which both researchers play leading roles, to maintain the data set and encourage future research initiatives.
Third, the project includes training and professionalization dimensions. The original members of the research teams will remain involved in the collaboration as consultants, contributing and enhancing their skills, and co-authoring scholarly papers. The advanced quantitative (e.g., propensity scores, matching techniques) and qualitative (e.g., fs QCA, process-tracing, case study) methodologies incorporated into this joint project provide new training for the consultants and the new Oxford and Minnesota graduate student members of the research teams.
Organisations
- University of Oxford (Lead Research Organisation)
- UNIVERSITY OF OXFORD (Collaboration)
- Ministry of Justice (Brazil) (Collaboration)
- University of Minnesota (Collaboration)
- Amnesty International (Collaboration)
- Foundation Lawyers and lawyers of the Argentine Northwest in Human Rights and Social Studies (Collaboration)
People |
ORCID iD |
| Leigh Payne (Principal Investigator) |
Publications
Payne LA
(2010)
The Political Implications of Amnesty Processes
Payne LA
(2014)
Transitional Justice in the Asia Pacific
Payne LA
(2013)
Methodological approaches and the value of a knowledge exchange
Payne LA
(2010)
Trial Databases and the International Picture
Payne LA
(2013)
Overcoming Impunity in the Age of Human Rights Accountability
Payne LA
(2010)
An Empirical Study on Effectiveness of Transitional Justice
Payne LA
(2012)
Justice Balance: When Transitional Justice Improves Human Rights
Payne LA
(2011)
Explaining the Impact of Transitional Justice
Olsen TD
(2012)
Amnesty: A Transitional Justice Mechanism?
Olsen TD
(2011)
Amnesty Laws in the Age of Accountability
Payne LA
(2011)
Understanding the Justice Balance
Payne LA
(2013)
The Justice Balance Revisited
| Description | The project found that despite what scholars and policy-makers have referred to as "a justice cascade" or "the age of accountability," amnesty laws persist and amnesty processes continue to constrain efforts to obtain justice for past human rights abuses. While the number of new amnesty laws appears to be tapering off since 1998, we found only three countries in which past amnesty laws no longer had legal standing. Thus amnesty laws continue to have an impact around the world and to constrain the achievement of justice. |
| Exploitation Route | We are currently working with Amnesty International to identify the sets of amnesty laws and amnesty practices that could be targeted for change. This will also involve the identification of key civil society groups in those targeted countries that have begun the process of demanding justice, as well as the legal and political leaders most likely to promote that justice. In addition, our prior findings show that amnesty laws do not necessarily block justice processes. Thus, working to remove additional obstacles on the road to justice is required. |
| Sectors | Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Description | The following organizations have used the work to generate better informed and more nuanced human rights policies and practices: Interamerican Commission on Human Rights, the International Center for Transitional Justice, the Brazilian Ministry of Justice, the Korean Truth and Reconciliation Commission, the Colombian Centre for Historical Memory, the UNDP and the World Bank |
| Sector | Government, Democracy and Justice |
| Impact Types | Policy & public services |
| Description | Presentation by Francesca Lessa of research findings on Amnesty Laws in South America to the Human Rights Unit of the Chilean Ministry of Justice, Santiago de Chile, 5 November 2014 |
| Geographic Reach | South America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Presentation by Francesca Lessa, Leigh Payne and Gabriel Pereira on "Amnesty in the Age of Human Rights Accountability: Policy Implications of Research Findings," at Chatham House, the Royal Institute of International Affairs, London, 31 October 2013 |
| Geographic Reach | Asia |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Side event during the Second Session of the Open-ended Intergovernmental Working Group on Transnational Corporations and other Business Enterprises on Human Rights |
| Geographic Reach | Multiple continents/international |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Special Hearings on Corporate Complicity in Human Rights Violations, Inter-American Commission of Human Rights |
| Geographic Reach | South America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Talk by Leigh Payne on "Colombia's Peace Process in Context," Ending Colombia's Internal Conflict: Prospects for Peace with the FARC and Beyond, 28 January 2013 RUSI (Royal United Services Institute), Whitehall, London |
| Geographic Reach | South America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Talk by Leigh Payne on "Overcoming Impunity in the Age of Human Rights Accountability" Christian Michelsen Institute, Bergen, Norway, 6 June 2013 |
| Geographic Reach | Asia |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Talk by Leigh Payne on "Rule of Law and Transitional Justice" International Export Forum on Peacebuilding and Post-Conflict Recovery, IPI's Trygve Lie Center for Peace, Security, and Development, New York, 23 May 2013 |
| Geographic Reach | North America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Talk by Leigh Payne on Overcoming Barriers to Justice in the Age of Human Rights Accountability at Dejusticia NGO and Universidad de los Andes, Bogota, Colombia, 20 August 2014 |
| Geographic Reach | South America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | Workshop on the challenges and opportunities of prosecuting economic actors for their involvement in grave human rights violations during armed conflicts and dictatorships |
| Geographic Reach | South America |
| Policy Influence Type | Influenced training of practitioners or researchers |
| Description | AHRC-NSF MOU |
| Amount | £272,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | AH/K502856/1 |
| Organisation | Arts & Humanities Research Council (AHRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2012 |
| End | 04/2015 |
| Description | John Fell Oxford University Press Research Fund |
| Amount | £17,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 101/552 |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Department | John Fell Fund |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 02/2011 |
| End | 06/2012 |
| Description | John Fell Oxford University Press Research Fund |
| Amount | £19,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | 093/351 |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Department | John Fell Fund |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2010 |
| End | 11/2011 |
| Description | Oak Foundation |
| Amount | £65,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | OCAY-11-143 |
| Organisation | Oak Foundation |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| Country | Global |
| Start | 05/2011 |
| End | 09/2012 |
| Title | Transitional Justice Research Collaborative |
| Description | Transitionaljusticedata.com is meant for scholars and practitioners who wish to examine the causes and impacts of mechanisms that address human rights violations. Comprised of principal researchers from University of Oxford, University of Minnesota and Harvard University, the Transitional Justice Research Collaborative presents data on three primary transitional justice mechanisms-human rights prosecutions, truth commissions, and amnesties-for 109 democratic transitions in 86 countries around the world, from 1970-2012. While by no means complete, the dataset includes the most comprehensive single collection of information on these mechanisms for countries around the world. With the support of the National Science Foundation and the Arts and Humanities Research Council, the data were collected from a variety of sources by more than 25 coders over a three-year period. As we complete our data collection and data processing activities, additional data will be made publically available including new data on human rights prosecutions, vetting and reparations. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2014 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | The website hosting the database https://transitionaljusticedata.com/ is open to the public and any researcher to use and browse. |
| URL | https://transitionaljusticedata.com/ |
| Description | Collaboration with ANDHES |
| Organisation | Foundation Lawyers and lawyers of the Argentine Northwest in Human Rights and Social Studies |
| Country | Argentina |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | My research team and I at the University of Oxford contributed to the project with decisions about methodological approaches, data collection and data analysis; as well as giving visibility to the work of our partners and to the events and outputs from the collaboration. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Our partners organised events, participated in data collection and analysis, are involved in litigating cases and identified relevant stakeholders |
| Impact | policy papers, academic publications, workshops, conferences |
| Start Year | 2015 |
| Description | Collaboration with Amnesty International |
| Organisation | Amnesty International |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Charity/Non Profit |
| PI Contribution | Collaboration with the International Justice team in their Anti-Impunity Campaign; during the collaboration, Oxford researchers and the Amnesty intern researched over 400 amnesty laws, particularly exploring the relationship between amnesties and trials, what types of amnesties allow victims and survivors to access to justice, and what political processes allow holding perpetrators accountable despite amnesties. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Collaboration with the International Justice team in their Anti-Impunity Campaign; during the collaboration, Oxford researchers and the Amnesty intern researched over 400 amnesty laws, particularly exploring the relationship between amnesties and trials, what types of amnesties allow victims and survivors to access to justice, and what political processes allow holding perpetrators accountable despite amnesties. |
| Impact | Collaboration with the International Justice team in their Anti-Impunity Campaign; during the collaboration, Oxford researchers and the Amnesty intern researched over 400 amnesty laws, particularly exploring the relationship between amnesties and trials, what types of amnesties allow victims and survivors to access to justice, and what political processes allow holding perpetrators accountable despite amnesties. |
| Start Year | 2011 |
| Description | Collaboration with Oxford Transitional Justice Research |
| Organisation | University of Oxford |
| Department | Oxford Transitional Justice Research |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | The Collaboration with OTJR resulted in the organisation of seven workshops between 2011 and 2012 held at the Department of Sociology (University of Oxford) where international speakers and activists from countries such as Guatemala, Uganda, and Thailand were invited to talk about amnesty laws. Moreover, an international colloquium entitled "Ways of Knowing After Atrocity: A Colloquium on the Methods used to Research, Design and Implement Transitional Justice Processes" was held at St. Antony's College. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Collaboration with OTJR resulted in the organisation of seven workshops between 2011 and 2012 held at the Department of Sociology (University of Oxford) where international speakers and activists from countries such as Guatemala, Uganda, and Thailand were invited to talk about amnesty laws. Moreover, an international colloquium entitled "Ways of Knowing After Atrocity: A Colloquium on the Methods used to Research, Design and Implement Transitional Justice Processes" was held at St. Antony's College. |
| Impact | The Collaboration with OTJR resulted in the organisation of seven workshops between 2011 and 2012 held at the Department of Sociology (University of Oxford) where international speakers and activists from countries such as Guatemala, Uganda, and Thailand were invited to talk about amnesty laws. Moreover, an international colloquium entitled "Ways of Knowing After Atrocity: A Colloquium on the Methods used to Research, Design and Implement Transitional Justice Processes" was held at St. Antony's College. |
| Start Year | 2011 |
| Description | Collaboration with the Brazilian Government Ministry of Justice Amnesty Commission |
| Organisation | Ministry of Justice (Brazil) |
| Department | Amnesty Commission |
| Country | Brazil |
| Sector | Public |
| PI Contribution | The Collaboration saw the organization of an international conference at St Antony's College on October 22-23, 2010 entitled ?Amnesty in the Age of Accountability: Brazil in Comparative and International Perspective? co-sponsored by the Comissão de Anistia, Ministério da Justiça (Brazil) and Oxford Transitional Justice Research. The conference had participants coming from Brazil, Chile, the United States, UK, and Norway, with over twenty-five presenters and discussants. |
| Collaborator Contribution | The Collaboration saw the organization of an international conference at St Antony's College on October 22-23, 2010 entitled ?Amnesty in the Age of Accountability: Brazil in Comparative and International Perspective? co-sponsored by the Comissão de Anistia, Ministério da Justiça (Brazil) and Oxford Transitional Justice Research. The conference had participants coming from Brazil, Chile, the United States, UK, and Norway, with over twenty-five presenters and discussants. |
| Impact | Holding of an international conference |
| Start Year | 2010 |
| Description | Collaboration with the University of Minnesota |
| Organisation | University of Minnesota |
| Country | United States |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| PI Contribution | Professors Leigh Payne (University of Oxford) and Kathryn Sikkink (University of Minnesota) have been awarded a grant by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) (Grant No. AH/I500030/1) and the National Science Foundation (USA) (Grant No. 0961226) in 2010 to carry out research on the impact of transitional justice. This collaborative project explores when, why, and how trials, truth commissions and amnesties advance human rights and democracy. |
| Collaborator Contribution | Professors Leigh Payne (University of Oxford) and Kathryn Sikkink (University of Minnesota) have been awarded a grant by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (UK) (Grant No. AH/I500030/1) and the National Science Foundation (USA) (Grant No. 0961226) in 2010 to carry out research on the impact of transitional justice. This collaborative project explores when, why, and how trials, truth commissions and amnesties advance human rights and democracy. |
| Impact | Website with the data gathered https://transitionaljusticedata.com/ |
| Start Year | 2010 |
| Description | Closed meeting with officials of APRODEH, a local human rights organization in Peru |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | In Perú, we held a closed meeting with officials of APRODEH, a local human rights organization in June 2017. IN that meeting, members of Andhes presented our action research methodology and the cases of corporate complicity that the University of Oxford has found. The meeting, laid out as an informal workshop, was important to plan potential activities. As a result of this meeting, Aprodeh joint Andhes and the University of Oxford in two funding proposals, one to the European Union and another to the Economic and Social Research Council. Unfortunately, those proposals were unsuccessful. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Closed-door meeting with officials of DPFL foundation, El Salvador |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | The University of Oxford has also developed a series of activities in El Salvador in March 2018. This country is going through a particular moment as the accountability process for state terrorism has been recently opened. First, we have had a closed-door meeting with officials of DPFL foundation to discuss our research and accountability initiatives. Second, we participated an of series of conferences at the Universidad Nacional on transitional justice where we presented our findings and analyzed corporate accountability processes around the world. There are two outcomes. First, the DPFL organized two events in August 2018. The first one was a closed workshop with practitioners from the main human rights groups. Andhes and UO will run the workshop to discuss how to adapt their research and accountability strategies to the local context. Second, there was a public conference open to the public. Additionally, the National University created a human rights program on transitional justice which will include corporate complicity as one of its components. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | First international conference on human rights and transitional justice organized by the Univerisdade Federal do Sao Paulo |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Between the 27 and 30 of March in Sao Paulo, the University of Oxford had a series of meeting with stakeholders to discuss current and potential accountability initiatives. First, we had a meeting with the public prosecutor to discuss the progress of the Volkswagen case and to discuss our research and impact-oriented activities. Second, we met Adriano Diogo who was leading the strategy to collect data for both the state and national truth commission. He gave us valuable information on the key actors involved in business accountability initiatives. Third, we had a meeting with union leaders to collect information on their work on business complicity and to discuss potential partnerships. Finally, we had a meeting with Marcio Seligman to discuss potential impact-oriented artistic interventions Additionally, we participated in the first international conference on human rights and transitional justice organized by the Univerisdade Federal do Sao Paulo. This conference was attended by academics, activists, human rights defenders and politicians. We presented our main findings, and the main accountability strategies developed to get business accountability around the world. Finally, held a workshop on action-research on business complicity. The workshop aimed to discuss with academics and activities how research can be used to develop business accountability strategies. The most relevant outcome of these activities was the contact with the public prosecutors on the Volkswagen case. As a result of this, we develop activities to give greater visibility to the Volkswagen case. The prosecutor presented the case at the conference held in 2017 in Oxford and he will part of a parallel project on public prosecutors in charge of Andhes. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Group of activities related to corporate accountability in Chile |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | In Chile, Andhes and OU partnered Londres 38 and a group of academics to develop a series of activities related to corporate accountability in july 2017. First, we had a workshop with Londres 38 where we discussed our action research models and the different strategies to get legal accountability. Second, Londres 38 organized a conference in the Instituto de Estudios Judiciales attended by judges, law enforcement officers, and lawyers working on crimes against humanity cases. Third, we had a closed-door meeting with the leading judge on cases related to crime against humanity in Chile. We discussed in that meeting how evidence collected in cases against state actors could be used against economic actors. Finally, we participated in a workshop to discuss the elaboration of a volume on Corporate Complicity in Chile aimed to reach a wide public audience and raise awareness about the topic. The outcomes of these activities are very successful. Londres 38 applied the action-research methodology used in Argentina and Colombia to the Chilean case. They found evidence against the Pesquera Arauco company and filled a criminal lawsuit against it in September 2017. Subsequently, Londres 38 participated in activities discussed above in this report.It participated in the events with the Interamerican commission staff in Bogotá in 2018; they presented evidence of corporate complicity in Chile and the details of their case. Finally, Londres 38 will be one of the organizations providing information to the commission for its first report on business and human rights. Also, the volume on corporate complicity in Chile has been written and will be published in July 2018. The volume is meant to reach a public audience beyond an academic one. Practitioners, academics, and journalist write it. A public conference will be held in July to disseminate the book. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |
| Description | Impunity and Accountability: Trends in Accountability |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Postgraduate students |
| Results and Impact | Our talk generated many questions and debate from both students and professors attending the talk We discussed possibility of further academic collaborations between our institutions. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | Justicia Transicional y sus Limites |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Presentation of our findings on corporate complicity with past atrocities and methodologies to bring economic actors to account. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | La polémica por el traslado de Mariana Mota |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A press release, press conference or response to a media enquiry/interview |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Francesca Lessa has been interviewed by TV channel, Canal 10, about the Uruguayan Supreme Court's decision to remove judge Mariana Mota from investigations into crimes perpetrated by the former dictatorship. The decision to remove Mariana Mota has drawn widespread international criticism, and represents a severe blow to all those fighting impunity for the dictatorship's crimes. Drawn attention to human rights issue relating to the judge's removal. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Launch of Cuentas claras: El papel de la Comisión de la Verdad en la develación de la responsabilidad de empresas en el conflicto armado colombiano |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Public launch of a report that we worked with in collaboration with Dejusticia (one of Colombia's most well known NGOs), where we presented our findings about corporate complicity in Colombia and recommended the Colombian Truth Commission an approach to the investigation of this phenomenon. The event allowed us to consolidate a network that we have been building over the years with key advocacy groups in Argentina (CELS and ANDHES) and Colombia (Dejusticia) to promote public policy papers and reports, strategic litigation, amicus briefs, academic publications, and enhance visibility before international human rights bodies and public visibility. Started a discussion with a working group that ever since the launch has been supporting the Truth Commission in Colombia methodologically and thematically about how to investigate corporate complicity with the armed conflict. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Meeting with policy makers in Colombia on transitional justice and corporate accountability in the offices of Dejusticia |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Policymakers/politicians |
| Results and Impact | Opened a dialogue between academia, civil society organizations and state entities (including the Prosecutor's Office, the Special Jurisdiction for Peace, Congress people and the Ombudsman's office) around corporate accountability |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2018 |
| Description | Presentation by Francesca Lessa on "Challenging Amnesty in the Age of Accountability: Overview and Main Findings from the Transitional Justice Collaborative Database Project", Universidad Católica del Uruguay, 2 October 2013 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Many questions raised and a discussion ensued. No impact yet. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Presentation by Leigh Payne on "Access to Justice: Overcoming Amnesty in the Age of Accountability," International Relations Research in Progress Seminar, University of Sussex, 11 March 2013 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Lively debate with questions raised on the findings of the research No impact yet |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Presentation by Leigh Payne on "Methodological approaches and the value of a knowledge exchange" Oxford Transitional Justice Research and Swisspeace conference on Ways of Knowing after Atrocity, 30 January 2013, University of Oxford |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | National |
| Primary Audience | Other academic audiences (collaborators, peers etc.) |
| Results and Impact | Several questions raised and lively debate No impact yet |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Presentation to Lawyers in Chile on advancing accountability of economic actors for their role in past violence in Chile. "Impunity and Accountability: Trends in Accountability" |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Professional Practitioners |
| Results and Impact | The purpose of the activity was to present our findings about corporate complicity in the past violence a methodologies to advance accountability, and support their work to advance corporate accountability in Chile. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2014 |
| Description | Presentation to the International Seminar on Políticas en Justicia Transicional, Instituto de Estudios Peruanos (IEP) y el Instituto de Democracia y Derechos Humanos de la Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú (IDEHPUCP), Lima, 20-22 August 2013 |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A talk or presentation |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Raised questions and discussion Collaboration with British Council |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| Description | Recent Sentence by Uruguayan Supreme Court Obstructs Search for Truth and Justice |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Online op-ed discussing the Unconstitutionality Verdict by the Supreme Court in Uruguay, which is a New Setback in the Struggle against Impunity To generate and raise international attention on the issue |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.wola.org/commentary/recent_sentence_by_uruguayan_supreme_court_obstructs_search_for_truth... |
| Description | Uruguay's Culture of Impunity Continues to Rear its Head |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | The online op-ed stimulate discussion and debate on human rights in Uruguay in light of Judge Mariana Mota's transfer that showed that the country's culture of impunity for the crimes of dictatorship still endures. International attention on the issue |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/opinion/2013/02/2013219105659440890.html |
| Description | Uruguay's Supreme Court of Injustice |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Media (as a channel to the public) |
| Results and Impact | Online op-ed discussing the latest sentence by the Supreme Court in Uruguay. On 22nd February a sentence by the Supreme Court of Justice (SCJ) judged as unconstitutional articles two and three of Law 18,831 - a bill enacted by the Uruguayan Parliament which, for the first time since 1986, allowed the judiciary to freely investigate the widespread and systematic human rights abuses committed by the dictatorship between 1973 and 1985. International attention on the issue |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2013 |
| URL | http://www.argentinaindependent.com/socialissues/humanrights/uruguays-supreme-court-of-injustice/ |
| Description | Uruguay: los crímenes de derecho internacional no están sujetos a prescripción |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | A magazine, newsletter or online publication |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | International |
| Primary Audience | Public/other audiences |
| Results and Impact | Report written by Amnesty International with input from our research team. The report was a response to the June 2011 sentence by the Uruguayan Supreme Court of Justice. The report urged the Supreme Court to correct its legal reasoning. It analysed Uruguay's obligations oninternational crimes and examined how other countries - s |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2011 |
| Description | Workshop together with the Plataforma Internacional contra la Impunidad in Antigua, Guatemala |
| Form Of Engagement Activity | Participation in an activity, workshop or similar |
| Part Of Official Scheme? | No |
| Geographic Reach | Local |
| Primary Audience | Third sector organisations |
| Results and Impact | On the 23rd of June 2017, we held a workshop together with the Plataforma Internacional contra la Impunidad in Antigua, Guatemala. The workshop was also aimed to discuss how to connect academic research with practitioners activities. Members of both UO and Andhes led the workshop. It was attended by more than 20 twenty representatives of human rights groups, private law bureaus, and academics. Unfortunately, there was no follow up activities with any of these groups. |
| Year(s) Of Engagement Activity | 2017 |