Reconcilliation after Atrocity Transitional Justice in Africa

Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelors

Department

Social Sciences

First Advisor

Hicks, Barbara

Keywords

Transitional Justice, International Criminal Court: South Africa Truth and Reconciliation

Area of Concentration

Political Science

Abstract

Africa is home to some of the world�s most egregious civil conflicts as well as many democratic and post-conflict transitioning countries. During times of conflict and transition from authoritarian rule, many serious crimes are left unpunished. Transitional justice mechanisms are then often set up to end impunity and promote reconciliation. This thesis examines three transitional justice mechanisms in Africa. The first is the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission to investigate crimes under apartheid, which is seen as a rather successful case of transitional justice. The second, the International Criminal Tribunal in Rwanda, seeks to punish leaders of the 1994 Rwandan Genocide, but has been considered inadequate. The third study examines the International Criminal Court �s relationship with Africa. All current cases in the ICC concern crimes committed in Africa; yet, only 31 of the 54 states in Africa have signed the Rome Statute governing the ICC. Nine possible explanations are tested for why countries have or have not signed the statute. The three cases provide insight into the effectiveness of different transitional justice mechanisms.

Rights

This bibliographic record is available under the Creative Commons CC0 public domain dedication. The New College of Florida, as creator of this bibliographic record, has waived all rights to it worldwide under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights, to the extent allowed by law.

This document is currently not available here.

Share

COinS