Transitional justice and reconciliation (1/2)

Introduction:
Transitional justice and reconciliation are essential processes for the promotion of stability and peace and for the start of state-building processes in countries which need to be repaired from war or conflict. They are similar and often dependent in some aspects, yet are very different concepts and should not be confused. 
The first part of this module discusses the concept of transitional justice. Transitional justice is a concept widely used in global politics to describe the mechanisms which help facilitate regime change. The outcomes of the mechanisms put in place are dependent on the actors involved. 
The second part of this module discusses the concept of reconciliation. Reconciliation is a post-conflict process which fixates on encouraging, strengthening and repairing relationships between conflict parties. Further, it focuses on the promotion of long-term goals such as the preservation of stability and peace. 

Transitional Justice

This section provides an overview of the concept of transitional justice. Transitional justice is a concept essential to the process of regime change. The defintion, aims, and mechanisms of transitional justice will briefly be explained. Further, an overview of transitional justice in relation to the Yemeni war will be discussed. Transitional justice will be explained in the Yemeni context, its challenges within Yemen, and its importance in the Yemeni war. 

Definition

“Transitional Justice is a concept and a process that encompasses a number of different legal, political and cultural instruments and mechanisms that can strengthen, weaken, enhance or accelerate processes of regime change and consolidation. Transitional justice measures can foster or hamper successful transition or reconciliation processes, and there is not automatic guarantee for a certain outcome. Transitional justice measures can be politically instrumentalised, used or abused, and the process outcome depends on a variety of different actors involved. The process, as such, is inter-generational, and the measures are multiple.” [1]

“Transitional Justice are Instruments and measures to deal with the legacy of a violent past in order to provide for a peaceful future” [2].

Transitional justice is an "intervention after a violent conflict or dictatorship to right past wrongs" [3]. 

Background

The concept of transitional justice is old but finds itself in a new application today. It was firstly used on a larger scale after WW II for Germany to investigate the crimes it had committed during the war. Since 1989 it has changed the global political context and is an established global norm today.

The aims of transitional justice

Mechanisms

Transitional justice and reconciliation 

The processes of transitional justice and reconciliation may interact with each other, but the two concepts should not be conflated. Reconciliation as an outcome can only be one of the potential objectives of transitional justice - its relevance depends on each context. For instance, transitional justice can be used to ensure political stability instead of promoting reconciliation. Transitional justice may include, for example: recognising victims, restoring trust, or preventing future crimes. These aims can contribute to the process of reconciliation. 

On transitional justice - Prof. Dr. Susanne Buckley-Zistel

Prof. Dr. Susanne Buckley-Zistel is the executive director of the Center for Conflict Studies at Marburg University. Her areas of expertise include transitional justice, memory studies, peacebuilding, gender and post-positivist theories and development assistance. She is currently leading a research project on "Ascribing Individual Responsibility in the Aftermath of Collective Violence and Repression" [4].  

Transitional Justice in Yemen - Interview of Abdul Hakim Al-Offairi:

What is the state of transitional justice in Yemen? 

In Yemen, we truly cannot talk about transitional justice as an experience from a modern perspective. There are indeed voices that demand it, but those calls for conciliation and tolerance did not have any fruitful results because they do not have proper application methodologies. There is, however, a sense of integration of techniques of transitional justice in the Yemeni tribal judicial system. It first stipulates the exchange of confessions or determination of cases and then discusses redressing damages and exonerations. The tribal judicial system is capable of reaching settlements that would satisfy both parties. This system is infused with techniques of transitional justice. 
There were several attempts to implement transitional justice in a modern way, for example, with two draft laws. The first contains the outcomes of Yemen's National Dialogue Conference (YNDC). Various parties committed to the principle. During the YNDC in 2011, solid and important confessions, as well as public and political apologies were presented, but withdrawn shortly after. For experts like Abdul Hakim Al-Offairi, these attempts do not qualify as organised efforts towards the application of transitional justice. 

What are the challenges to transitional justice in Yemen? 

The major challenge is the weakness of the country in its judicial system and providing a security body for the country. Another difficulty is the level of readiness of determination of political parties to make their confessions and to subject themselves to a process of transparency and solid transitional justice to support the stability of the system and the community’s peace. Third, the country is still in conflict, with war conditions and economic breakdown as a consequence. Additionally, the high number of firearms presents a very significant challenge. If all those weapons are not returned to the hands of the state, the application of transitional justice will face a huge challenge. Moreover, Yemeni politicians lack awareness of transitional justice, and therefore it is not taken seriously enough as a way of reforming the country or strengthening the government institutions. 

 Why is transitional justice so important for Yemen? 

Transitional justice is vital for the future of the country, including its stability and security and providing solid and stable security not only for its citizens. 

Interview of Abdul Hakim Al-Offairi - Video [5] 

Conclusion: 

Conclusion
Through different mechanisms, transitional justice allows for regime change and consolidation in a war-torn state such as Yemen. There are many challenges to be dealt with, yet transitional justice is essential for the creation of a Yemeni state. This section has provided an overview of the concept of transitional justice and analysed transitional justice in the context of the Yemeni state.

Reconciliation 

Abstract

The second part of this learning module will consider the process of reconciliation in a post- conflict society, which focuses on rebuilding and strengthening the personal relationships between conflict parties after the end of violence. After the conflict parties formally end the violence through a peace agreement or treaty, reconciliation is crucial in improving social relations within the new state and consequently improving the strength of its new values and institutions. The process of reconciliation is complex and unique in every post-conflict society as it relies on the acceptance of the identity of former enemies in conflict and thus serves a crucial role in the restoration of tolerance and harmony in society. Furthermore, this is a process that happens throughout several levels in society and can include a variety of methods of rebuilding interpersonal relationships. In order to study this topic and understand its dimensions, this module will provide a selection of materials which will introduce the concept of reconciliation, its components, types, aims and mechanisms.

Key Words
reconciliation, post-conflict, peace agreement, interpersonal relationships, identity, institutional reconciliation, socio-political reconciliation 

Image - Memorial "Versöhnung", located in Berlin [6]

Glossary

This glossary entry provides an in-depth definition of reconciliation and functions as an introduction to the topic. Following the definition, the glossary connects the concept to some aspects of the Yemeni conflict, allowing an understanding of what reconciliation may look like after the end of violence in Yemen. In addition, it makes helpful suggestions for further research on the topic. 

Reading

Seils' text is very valuable in understanding reconciliation. First, it places reconciliation in the context of transitional justice and highlights how these processes are interconnected. Then, it introduces the different types of reconciliation, namely individual reconciliation, institutional reconciliation, interpersonal reconciliation, socio-political reconciliation and defines thick and thin reconciliation as a measurement of its varying degrees. After reading the text, find some visualisation of the most important aspects and components of reconciliation below. [7] 

What is reconciliation?

Reconciliation is a complex set of processes that involve building or rebuilding relationships, often in the aftermath of massive and widespread human rights violations. It can occur on different levels which will be presented in the following. 
The concept of reconciliation can contain aspects of truth, justice, mercy or peace, all influencing each other. 
It can be described as "thin" if it is based on coexistance with little or no trust, and shared values, or as "thick" if it is based on the restoration of dignity, reversing structural causes of marginalisation and discrimination, and restoring victims to their position as rights bearers and citizens.

Different layers of reconciliation

There are different layers of reconciliation: The first layer can be described as an individual reconciliation and concerns healing and making peace with past experiences. 
Secondly, there is the intrapersonal reconciliation which focuses on relationship between the victims and perpetrators as well as forgiving and being forgiven. 
As a third layer, socio-political reconciliation focuses on the reconciliation process between social, political, ethnic, religious groups and restoring the social contract. 
Fourth, there is an institutional reconciliation process. This process deals with institutions which need to win back the trust of alienated parts of society and is often connected to justice and security sector reforms. 

Podcast: Seils (2017) The Place of Reconciliation in Transitional Justice 

This podcast summarises and reviews the text by Seils. It is particularly valuable as it provides some information on Seils' academic background and seeks to highlight some of the limitations of his arguments. In addition, this concept will be applied to the Yemeni conflict.

Videoinput by Abdulsalam al-Rubaidial

This lecture by Abdulsalam al-Rubaidial connects the process of reconciliation to the Yemeni conflict. Dr. Abdulsalam al-Rubaidial is a researcher focusing on Yemeni political and religious discourses and the role of identity and social change in Yemen. He holds a Master’s degree in Arabic Language and Literature from Sana’a University in Yemen and a PhD in Near and Middle Eastern Studies from the University of Bonn. Throughout his career, he has been an active researcher and lecturer at several universities, for example at the Department of Arabic and Islamic Studies, Faculty of Education at al-Baydha’ University and the Gender Development Research and Studies Center at Sana’a University. In addition, he was part of the project “Framing the Revolution in Yemen” at the University of Bonn and has published several journal articles in English and Arabic. Furthermore, he is the editor of Yemen Policy Center and Madaniya Magazine. [8]
In this podcast, Dr. al-Rubaidial speaks about the history of reconciliation in Yemen, the development of the most recent conflict and the initiatives for peace building that have taken place so far. He highlights the challenges the conflict parties face for reconciliation processes in this ongoing conflict. 

Find the lecture by clicking this link: https://videoportal.uni-freiburg.de/category/video/Reconciliation-in-Yemen/a624fd8f4b6be2fbb1967c0fa7d55f9b/206# 

Podcast: Narratives of (In)Justice 

This podcast outlines the upcoming publication from Julia Gurol, which examines how novels are literary spaces that give a voice to Yemeni people. It highlights how Yemeni writers live alongside war, conflict and corruption and that their novels reflect the reality of their every day experiences in these turbulent political contexts. This podcast, through summarising this upcoming publication, introduces how reconciliation is a process that influences individuals in conflict societies in many different ways and provides detailed examples on what kind of reconciliation measures will be necessary between conflict groups in Yemen. [9]

Conclusion
This part of the module has considered the process of reconciliation, providing numerous reading, audio and video materials for an in-depth study of the topic and its relevance in the Yemeni conflict. Reconciliation is a process that is interconnected with transitional justice, but depends on several aspects, as for example individual reconciliation, that do not happen through transitional justice but require reconciliation mechanisms. In the context of the Yemeni conflict, there are several divisions, such as religious, gender or tribal, that will need the attention of reconciliation measures in its future peacebuilding process. 

Summary
The module before you briefly explained the concepts of transitional justice and reconciliation. The concept of transitional justice was defined and analysed in regards to the Yemeni war. The concept of reconciliation was thoroughly explained and many academic works were suggested, including podcasts and professional videos which offer an in-depth study and allow for further understanding of the concept. 
These processes are post-conflict processes, therefore, for them to be put into work they require an end to the war at some point. They are similar, and in some cases, go hand in hand. Yet, they are not the same. If these processes are practiced properly, they will promote long-term stability and peace.