Dealing with the Past or Moving Forward? Transitional Justice, the Bangsamoro Peace Agreement and Federalism in the Philippines

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-28
Author(s):  
Jayson S. Lamchek ◽  
George B. Radics
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
Authoritarian Rule ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
The Past ◽  
Land Dispossession ◽  
The Government

Abstract In the Philippines, transitional justice is plagued by questions about whether and how to deal with the past as well as whether and what kind of justice is possible in the present. In 2014, the government ended its armed conflict with Muslim secessionists by enacting a peace deal with transitional justice provisions, but also proposed federalism as a more lasting solution to conflict. This article reads the agreement’s ‘dealing with the past’ framework as reflecting a conventional approach. It then highlights continuing Muslim experiences of land dispossession and human rights abuses. It shows how transitional justice can come with uncertainty about what it means to “move forward,” what “past” to overcome, and how the past is related to “justice.” Furthermore, it argues that as the country increasingly veers towards authoritarian rule, conventional applications of transitional justice are further impeded. It explores how federalism receives more enthusiastic support than transitional justice.

scholarly journals The European Court of Human Rights, Transitional Justice and Historical Abuse in Consolidated Democracies

2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (4) ◽  
pp. 675-704
Author(s):  
James Gallen
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Authoritarian Regimes ◽  
European Convention ◽  
Authoritarian Rule ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
European Court ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract In recent years, both transitional justice and the role of the European Court of Human Rights in dealing with historical abuses have evolved. Transitional justice has begun to address widespread or systemic human rights abuses outside of the contexts of armed conflict and authoritarian regimes. In three key recent judgments, El-Masri v Macedonia, Janowiec v Russia and O’Keeffe v Ireland, the Court has clarified and expanded its approach to addressing historical human rights violations relevant to transitional justice in significant, if inconsistent, ways. To date, there is no exploration of the relationship between transitional justice, historical abuse outside the contexts of armed conflict or authoritarian rule and the European Convention of Human Rights. This article seeks to address that gap by considering the potential opportunities and obstacles for the use of the Convention to address historical abuse in consolidated democracies as a part of transitional justice.

Latin American Amnesties in Comparative Perspective: Can the Past Be Buried?

1999 ◽  
Vol 13 ◽  
pp. 99-122 ◽  
Author(s):  
Margaret Popkin ◽  
Nehal Bhuta
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Authoritarian Rule ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Status ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Comparative Examination

Throughout Latin America during the past 15 years, new democratic or postwar governments have faced demands for transitional justice following the end of authoritarian rule or the conclusion of internal armed conflicts.Demands for justice for serious past abuses have often been met by threats of destabilization by the perpetrators and calls for forgiving and forgetting in the name of reconciliation.Although recent developments in and interpretations of international law oblige states to punish those responsible for serious human rights violations, many transitional governments insist that reconciliation requires broad amnesty laws. This essay first reviews basic legal and conceptual issues relating to prosecution of, and grants of amnesty to, those responsible for gross human rights abuses during earlier periods. A comparative examination follows, starting with El Salvador, where the amnesty law constitutes the most comprehensive and successful action to end efforts to address past abuses. The essay then reviews the status of efforts in Argentina, Chile, Honduras, Guatemala, and South Africa, where, despite amnesty laws, civil society and courts have sought to uncover the truth about the past, hold perpetrators accountable, and obtain redress for victims.

Frozen Negotiations: The Peace Process in Chiapas

2006 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 131-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Raúúl Beníítez Manaut ◽  
Andrew Selee ◽  
Cynthia J. Arnson
Keyword(s):  
Armed Conflict ◽  
Democratic Transition ◽  
Political Process ◽  
Peace Process ◽  
Democratic Society ◽  
The Political ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Government ◽  
Better Than

Mexico's democratic transition has helped reduce, if not eliminate, the threat of renewed armed conflict in Chiapas. However, absent more active measures from the government and the Ejéército Zapatista de Liberacióón Nacional (EZLN) to seek a permanent peace agreement and come to terms with the legacies of the past, the conflict will linger on in an unstable déétente, which we term ““armed peace.”” While this situation is far better than the open hostilities of the past, it also belies the promise of a fully democratic society in which all citizens are equally included in the political process. La transicióón democráática en Mééxico ha contribuido a reducir, si no eliminar, la posibilidad de que el conflicto armado en Chiapas se reanude. Sin embargo, sin esfuerzos mas activos por parte del gobierno y del Ejéército Zapatista de Liberacióón Nacional (EZLN) para buscar un acuerdo de paz permanente y saldar cuentas con el pasado, el conflicto permaneceráá en un estado inestable que llamamos ““paz armada””. Aunque esta situacióón es mucho mejor que las tensiones y agresiones del pasado, no cumple los requisitos de una sociedad plenamente democráática en que todos los ciudadanos participan en condiciones de igualdad en el proceso políítico.

The Suharto Case

2016 ◽  
Vol 44 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 214-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jiwon Suh
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
National Commission ◽  
Public Attention ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
The Past ◽  
Study Team ◽  
Political Capabilities ◽  
The Impact

How could Suharto avoid prosecution for human rights abuses? For a preliminary answer, this paper provides an account of a specific and observable failure: The failure of the Suharto study team, a Komnas-HAM (National Commission of Human Rights) initiative to put the atrocities of the Suharto era on the human rights court track. It begins with prosecutorial approaches toward past abuses and a lack of coordination over transitional justice strategies in Indonesia as the background to Suharto’s non-prosecution. Then, it proceeds to trace the Suharto study team’s life in 2003 until its defeat. The fate of the Suharto team highlights the dilemma of timing between public attention and political capabilities in transitional justice. Five years after Suharto stepped down, legacies from the past prevented progress in the case, while the impact was far from explosive when new commissioners of the Komnas-HAM finally announced the findings of gross violations in 2012.

scholarly journals Different mechanisms, same result: Remembering the liberation war in Mozambique

2021 ◽  
pp. 175069802199599
Author(s):  
Natália Bueno
Keyword(s):  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Path Dependence ◽  
Memory Studies ◽  
Truth Commission ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
The Past ◽  
War Narrative ◽  
Critical Junctures ◽  
The Government ◽  
The One

Even though scholars have made substantial contributions in connecting the fields of transitional justice and memory studies, important questions remain unanswered. The question of sequencing is one of them. How does a certain TJ mechanism condition the implementation of subsequent mechanisms and how together they shape memory narratives in a given society? This article builds on the case of Mozambique. Soon after the signing of the General Peace Agreement in 1992, the Frelimo-led government approved Amnesty Law 15/92 and with it, the past was to be left in the past. Such a choice was different from the one taken by Samora Machel—Mozambique’s first president—between 1975 and 1982. By promoting a quasi-truth commission, Machel revisited Mozambique’s colonial past and brought comprometidos’ actions into the open. This article finds that whether the government opened up about the past or sought to leave it behind, the result has been the same: the celebratory reproduction of the liberation war narrative. Resorting to path dependence and critical junctures, this study explains the ways in which such a narrative has become hegemonic throughout the last four decades.

scholarly journals The Gph–M.I.L.F. Agreement: human rights provisions and possible overlaps

2014 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fajri Matahati Muhammadin
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Peace Process ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Armed Conflicts ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
New Approach ◽  
Potential Problems ◽  
The Government ◽  
Existing Structure

Abstract: The GPH – M.I.L.F. Agreement: Human Rights Provisions and Possible Overlaps. One of the challenges in ending non-international armed conflicts is to conclude a peace agreement that satisfies the need of both parties. A new approach to this is the human rights approach, which seeks to observe and promise to fulfil elements of human rights as terms of peace. The ongoing peace process in the Philippines between the Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front is seeing positive progress, with its peace agreement provisions highly based upon human rights. However, there are potential problems in implementing these provisions, as well as overlaps with the pre-existing structure or even between the human rights provisions themselves. This essay will observe the problems and overlaps particularly on provisions related to the rights of religion and women, and how they can be addressed. Abstrak: Perjanjian GPH-MILF: Ketentuan Hak Asasi Manusia dan Kemungkinan Terjadinya Tumpang tindih. Salah satu tantangan dalam mengakhiri konflk non internasional adalah menyusun perjanjian damai yang memuaskan kedua belah pihak. Sebuah pendekatan baru dalam perjanjian damai adalah pendekatan Hak Asasi Manusia (HAM) yang mengamati dan berkomitmen memenuhi elemen-elemen HAM sebagai syarat dalam perjanjian damai. Proses perdamaian antara Pemerintah dan Moro Islamic Liberation Front yang masih berlangsung di Filipina saat ini memiliki kemajuan yang positif. Perjanjian-perjanjian yang sudah ditandatangani tampak jelas dilandasi oleh HAM. Akan tetapi tampak kemungkinan beberapa masalah implementasi serta kontradiksi antara ketentuan HAM dalam perjanjian damai dengan struktur yang telah ada, dan bahkan antar ketentuan HAM dalam perjanjian itu sendiri. Tulisan ini akan mengamati implementasi dan kontradiksi dalam perjanjian damai ini terutama terkait hak beragama dan hak wanita dan bagaimana permasalahan tersebut dapat diselesaikan. DOI: 10.15408/jch.v1i1.1449

scholarly journals Confronting the Past Abuses: Indonesia and Southeast Asia

2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 23-42
Author(s):  
Priyambudi Sulistiyanto
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Southeast Asia ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
New Democracies ◽  
Universal Model ◽  
Power Structures ◽  
Real Power ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
Regional Comparison ◽  
The Past

This article examines the politics of reconciliation in Indonesia and Southeast Asia. It focuses in particular on the case of Talangsari killings in Indonesia and makes a regional comparison with Thailand, Cambodia, the Philippines and Myanmar. The Indonesian experience illustrates some of the complex issues that arise when attempts are made to dealing with past abuses, especially in the context of the constraints and possibilities faced by new democracies. In a comparative perspective what is being experienced in Indonesia is not new in the sense that, as argued by scholars elsewhere, new democracies also have to face this kind of situation.1 This article argues that dealing with the past human rights abuses brings about real power struggles among the contending actors and power holders and it reflects the power structures within and outside the country. It is suggested that there is no “universal” model for dealing with past human rights abuses but some form of accountability which brings together the elements of prosecution, reconciliation and forgiveness could be considered.

scholarly journals The Influence of Rational Dimension in the GPH-MILF Peace Process

2018 ◽  
pp. 145-152 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Community Involvement ◽  
Peace Process ◽  
The Philippines ◽  
Strategic Interactions ◽  
Actor Model ◽  
Peace Agreement ◽  
The Government ◽  
Rational Factor ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
Shed Light

Resolution of the so-called “Bangsamoro Question” rests at the heart of the peace process between the Government of the Philippines (GPH) and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) in the Southern Philippines, also known as the Bangsamoro homeland. Inspired by Allison and Zelikow’s conceptualization of Rational Actor Model (RAM), this paper analyzed how rational factor contributed to the conclusion of the Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro (CAB) in 2014 and eventually enshrined into the Philippine Constitution through the approval of the Bangsamoro Organic Law (BOL) on July 27, 2018. This paper argued that the success of the GPH-MILF peace process does not only depend on the sincerity of the administrations of both then President Aquino III and current President Duterte, international support or commitment, pressure from civil societies and community involvement as what many commentators provided. As shown in this paper, the rational factor and its dimension significantly affected actors’ strategic interactions and the GPH-MILF peace process per se. The findings offered a new perspective for conflict-resolution and shed light on how rational dimension impacted both actors’ strategic interactions, which led to the conclusion of the GPH-MILF peace agreement. This clearly indicated that rational dimension greatly influenced GPH and MILF’s strategic interactions and thereby took flexible attitudes to resolve outstanding issues between them which consequently led to the signing of the CAB and ultimately the ratification of the BOL in 2018.

scholarly journals Thinking Systemically About Transitional Justice, Legal Systems, and Resilience

2021 ◽  
pp. 530-550
Author(s):  
Janine Natalya Clark
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Transitional Justice ◽  
Theory And Practice ◽  
Legal Systems ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Human Rights Abuses ◽  
Resilience Thinking ◽  
Systemic Impact ◽  
Resilience Framework ◽  
The Impact

Transitional justice refers to the set of judicial and non-judicial processes that societies may use to deal with legacies of past human rights abuses and atrocities. While the field is rapidly expanding, to date there are almost no systematic analyses of transitional justice within a resilience framework, or vice versa. The purpose of this chapter is to address that gap and to demonstrate why resilience is highly relevant for transitional justice theory and practice. It argues that resilience thinking can enhance the impact of transitional justice on the ground, by contributing to the development of more ecological approaches to dealing with the past that locate individuals within their broader social environments. The chapter also reflects on the conceptual and empirical utility of resilience as a concept that opens up a space for analyzing the wider societal and systemic impact of legal systems more generally.

scholarly journals Government as a Key Duty Bearer in Transition Reforms from Socialism to Capitalism-The Case of Albania

2018 ◽  
Vol 14 (32) ◽  
pp. 84
Author(s):  
Arlinda Ymeraj
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Social Welfare ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Efficient Allocation ◽  
Allocation Of Resources ◽  
The Past ◽  
Socialist System ◽  
The Government ◽  
Effective Distribution

The paper “Government as a key duty bearer in transition reforms from socialism to capitalism – the case of Albania”, addresses the way in which the government should exercise its power to ensure that citizens have equal access to social welfare services, enjoying their rights. Albania, like other Central and Eastern European countries experienced the past socialist system, which failed. The failure of the socialist system was the failure of the state: in political, economic and social terms. As far as economic policies are concerned, all data demonstrate the collapse of socialism, because the system was based on inefficiency, which eroded growth. Regardless of the principles of communist regimes adopted in former communist countries’ Constitutions, the past system brought neither equity nor justice, and therefore instead of “social cohesion”, the contradictions among social groups and categories, deepened. After the failure of socialism, Albania embarked on the new path aimed at establishing democratic regimes through the protection of human rights and at raising the standard of living. Albania has been proactive in ratifying international conventions relating to human rights in general and to vulnerable groups. Very recently, on June 2014, the European Council granted Albania candidate status, as a recognition for the reform steps undertaken in harmonizing its domestic organic laws and legislation with international standards. As part of these twin obligations from UN intergovernmental and EU processes, Albanian governments after the 90s have been progressively taking measures vis-à-vis efficient allocation of resources and effective distribution of social welfare. Nevertheless, Albanian citizens live in a dire reality. Therefore, after 25 years of transition, one of the main goals of reforms, “Efficient allocation of resources to boost growth and effective distribution of social welfare to enhance equity”, seems not to have been achieved. Undoubtedly, this influences the controversial opinions about the government’s control vis-à-vis government’s mode of functioning, advancing arguments that examine whether it is a question of abuse or that of concentration of power.

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