Rethinking Transitions

“Transitional Justice initiatives have long been criticized for an allegedly narrow focus on gross and consistent violations of fundamental civil and political rights and not enough attention to abuse of economic, social and cultural rights. But the problem is not whether but how to apply truth, justice, reparations and institutional reform to fundamental – and often ancestral – inequalities in each transitional society. This volume contributes thoughtful and rigorous research to that fundamental question. It constitutes a challenge to the way transitional justice is executed in our time, but also a tribute to the power of the idea that there are indeed concrete and practical means to realize the idea of justice in societies emerging from conflict.”
Juan E. Méndez, former President at the International Center for Transitional Justice and UN Special Rapporteur on Torture

“Each country facing a past of human rights violations has its own cultural and political history. Each has to find its own unique path to reconciliation and peace. This interdisciplinary volume demonstrates that yet in all cases, tackling social injustice and inequality is a prerequisite for lasting peace. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in finding appropriate solutions to the problems facing countries in transition".
Richard J. Goldstone, former Justice of the Constitutional Court of South Africa and former First Chief Prosecutor of the UN International Criminal Tribunals for the former Yugoslavia and Rwanda

“This is an important book. Models of transitional justice thus far have largely failed to reflect the subtleties of gender, diversity and intersecting discrimination that must be made central to the process. This book analyses those failures from the experience of those who have the greatest stake in making the transition work and provides those with responsibility for design and implementation with important approaches as to how improvement can be made.”
Madeleine Rees, Secretary General, Women's International League for Peace and Freedom, former head of the Women's Rights and Gender Unit of the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and head of the Field Office of the OHCHR in Bosnia.


About the authors
Felipe Gómez Isa is Professor of Public International Law at the Institute of Human Rights of the University of Deusto (Bilbao), and has worked on a wide range of human rights issues, social justice and indigenous peoples' rights. He has also focused on transitional justice processes in countries such as Guatemala, Colombia or Spain.

Gaby Oré Aguilar is a human rights lawyer with an extensive experience on gender justice and economic and social rights issues. She worked in national and international NGOs and social justice philanthropy organizations in transitional countries in the Andean Region of Latin America. She is currently Program Director with the Center for Economic and Social Rights.