scholarly journals Transitional justice and the transition to democracy: looking at the past to gain a better perspective for the future

Amicus Curiae ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 2012 (90) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ulrich Karpen
2016 ◽  
Vol 16 ◽  
pp. 31-50
Author(s):  
Martin Faix ◽  
Ondrej Svacek

This article addresses issues arising in the context of transition to democracy in Central and Eastern Europe, namely in Germany (former East Germany), Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. The contribution reflects various means of transitional justice which were applied in these countries: access to the archives of secret police, lustration and prosecution of the crimes of the past (successor trials). Central issue of this article is the criminal prosecution of communist crimes. Here authors focus their attention on two interrelated aspects: choice of applicable law and statutory limitations, which both are linked to the principle of legality. Practice and methods in prosecution of the communist crimes adopted across the analyzed countries reveal considerable heterogeneity and from comparative perspective pose a unique legal laboratory. Despite differences in applicable law, including treatment and interpretation of statutory limitations, and differences in overall outcomes of prosecution and punishment of the communist crimes, all countries were conformed to requirements of the principle of legality. The article thus confirms that states, when dealing with their past, enjoy a wide margin of appreciation.Keywords:  Communist crimes. Central and Eastern Europe. Transitional justice. Successor trials. Nullum crimen sine lege.


The introductory chapter opens up the question of how to approach the aftermath of the Terror. Most of revolutionary historiography is focused on the origins of the event, not on its aftermath. This chapter argues that there is much to learn about the French Revolution and its relevance to our own times by studying the aftermath of the Terror. In articulating the book’s approach to the subject, the chapter draws on the recent literature on transitional justice and trauma, as well as on the much earlier ideas of Edgar Quinet. Approaching the aftermath of the Terror invites us to consider how those who had experienced revolutionary violence faced the past in the context of a movement oriented toward the future.


2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 88-93
Author(s):  
José-Miguel Bello y Villarino

Ramona Vijeyarasa recently published in this journal an article advocating for the law in general, and legislation in particular, to be gender responsive. She argued that to redress gender inequality, the law must address the different needs and position of women. Here I propose a bigger scope for the intervention needed to redress legally-originated gender inequality. I contend that a system of transitional justice for women is necessary. This intervention, based on the equity principle of fairness and a need to repair a damage caused by the law, is proposed as a temporary measure until adequate redress is provided.


1998 ◽  
Vol 39 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-48 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jon Elster

After the transition from an authoritarian to a democratic regime, one commonly observes trials of the agents of the former regime and efforts to compensate its victims. In our century, waves of transitional justice have occured in German-occupied countries after 1941, in South- Eastern Europe in the 1970s, in Latin-American countries in the 1980s, and in post-Communist countries after 1989. The article proposes a framework for the behavioral study of these phenomena. The dependent variables are political decisions to pursue retroactive justice after the transition. Independent variables include the constraints of the actors, their motivations and beliefs, as well as the mechanisms by which individual policy preferences are aggregated into binding collective decisions.


2019 ◽  
Vol 4 (57) ◽  
pp. 56
Author(s):  
Sandra Regina MARTINI ◽  
Dailor Dos SANTOS

ABSTRACT Objectives: The present study deals with the discussion of the construction of political memory, questioning if the Law has sufficiency to fully develop the Right to Memory. The question is how the ethics of memory should be defined and analyzed, as well as whether the Law is open to the plurality of speeches about the past so that the right to memory and truth can be guaranteed. Methodology: The study is based on bibliographic research and adopts in its approach the hypothetical-deductive method, through the interpretation of scientific articles and studies, also seeking a historical perspective. Results: One of the conclusions of the study refers to the construction of political memory, which requires a conciliatory meaning to be given to the Right to Memory and Truth, based on a new ethical appropriation. Brazilian transitional policies are insufficient, which indicates the reason for its inconclusive democratic statement. An ethics of memory must contemplate all reports emerging from the past; that the Law must admit the perspectives that transitional practices are based on their intrinsic composition, endorsing historical facts that cannot be refuted in the future. The political memory is a perspective of social identity and belonging, based on an ethical refusal to deny history. Contributions: The article addresses a topic less discussed in Brazil and, from various perspectives, questions whether the law can keep its current codes and remain closed to diversity and plurality, showing that the right to memory and truth will only be limited to the moments allowed by Transitional Justice, where memory is considered as an opportunity to summarize the past. , which will tolerate the repetition of dichotomist appropriations. KEYWORDS: Right to memory and truth; fraternal law; transitional justice; political memory; ethics. RESUMO Objetivos: O presente estudo trata da discussão da construção da memória política, questionandoe se o Direito tem suficiência para desenvolver plenamente o Direito à Memória. Indaga-se como deve ser definida e analisada a ética da memória, bem como se o Direito está aberto à pluralidade de discursos sobre o passado para que o Direito à Memória e à Verdade possa ser garantido. Metodologia: O estudo alicerça-se em pesquisas bibliográficas e adota em sua abordagem o método hipotético-dedutivo, por intermédio de interpretação de artigos científicos e estudos, buscando também uma perspectiva histórica. Resultados: Uma das conclusões do estudo refere-se à construção da memória política, que exige um sentido conciliatório a ser conferido ao Direito à Memória e à Verdade, baseado em uma nova apropriação ética. As políticas transicionais brasileiras são insuficientes, o que indica a razão de sua afirmação democrática inconclusa. Uma ética da memória deve contemplar todos os relatos que emergem do passado; que o Direito deve admitir as perspectivas que as práticas transicionais assentam em sua intrínseca composição, endossando fatos históricos que não podem, no futuro, ser refutados. A memória política é uma perspectiva de identidade e pertencimento sociais, a partir de uma recusa ética à negação da história. Contribuições: O artigo aborda um tema pouco discutido no Brasil e, em diversas perspectivas, questiona se o Direito pode manter seus atuais códigos e permanecer fechado à diversidade e pluralidade, mostrando como consequência que o direito à memória e à verdade estarão somente limitados aos instantes permitidos pela Justiça Transicional, onde a memória é considerada como uma oportunidade para resumir o passado, que tolerará a repetição de apropriações dicotomistas.PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Direito à memória e à verdade; Direito fraterno; justiça de transição; memória política; ética.


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