Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Transitional justice – Uganda'

This thesis explores the construction, implementation and experience of transitional justice at both the state-level in Uganda, and within the Acholi sub-region, the epicenter of the twenty-year war between the Government of Uganda and the Lord’s Resistance Army. It takes 2006 as its starting point, when peace talks began between both sides in Juba, southern Sudan. Conducted against the background of the ICC’s first ever arrest warrants for leading members of the LRA, these talks provided the empirical context for the major theoretical debates that dominated the nascent field of transitional justice. These included normative disagreements about the relationship between peace and justice and the relative merits of international versus indigenous approaches to justice. At Juba, an Agreement on Accountability and Reconciliation was signed and purported to address and resolve these dilemmas. To date however, we know remarkably little about the political and socio-legal dynamics and trajectory of transitional justice in Uganda since Juba. This thesis aims to bridge that gap, providing an in-depth, empirical study based on extensive fieldwork involving 106 semi-structured interviews, 25 focus group discussions and participant observation. Two major dissonances are identified in the promotion, practice and experience of transitional justice in Uganda since 2006. The first highlights the dilemmas surrounding contemporary donor approaches to transitional justice in the absence of a substantive domestic political transition. The interaction of a technocratic and apolitical donor approach with a reactive, procrastinatory and occasionally opportunistic GoU approach, created a stasis which prevented the emergence of a transitional justice policy for Uganda. The second area of dissonance identified was between the ‘local’ as imagined in transitional justice narratives and the local as lived experience in post-conflict Acholiland. Rhetoric around particular ‘Acholi’ approaches to transitional justice, focusing on values of forgiveness and reconciliation, has obscured both the complexity of post-conflict local justice practices and the extent to which these processes and their outcomes were highly contingent on the wider, post-conflict socio-economic context, including poverty, physical and spiritual insecurity, and other quotidian strains. Finally, in its treatment of the northern Ugandan case, this thesis contributes to broader theoretical debates about how transitional justice is constructed and practiced, particularly in contexts where there has been no substantial political transition.

With the end of the Lord’s Resistance Army conflict in northern Uganda, efforts of dealing with the violent past and paving the way for a more just, peaceful future are now taking shape in Uganda and especially the northern region. Existing frameworks and proposals for transitional justice emphasize traditional justice, the option of establishing a truth commission, formal justice and reparations most prominently. Despite the strong involvement of children and youths in the conflict – as victims and perpetrators – their inclusion in, needs for and expectations of transitional justice have barely been explored or acknowledged. This thesis thus aims at exploring ways in which formerly abducted children can be included in such processes in meaningful ways that accommodate for their needs and preferences. Since the existing research and literature on the field of child soldiers and transitional justice is rather limited, field work has been conducted in northern Uganda in November and December of 2012. A total of 17 people were interviewed representing a variety of local, national and international organizations as well as government agencies specializing in the fields of transitional justice or child protection, and rehabilitation of former child soldiers. Semistructured interviews with open-ended questions were conducted and the gathered qualitative data was used to substantiate, complement or fill gaps in the existing body of research on the topic. The findings of this thesis conclude that there is a need for comprehensive, inclusive transitional justice mechanisms that acknowledge former abductees in their dual role as victims and perpetrators. A desire for active government involvement and participation in these processes has been emphasized strongly. The research has furthermore shown the need for transitional justice mechanisms to foster agency and the empowerment of formerly abducted children and youths in order to enable them to become active, resourceful members of their communities.

This thesis analyzes the development of national justice processes in Uganda in the wake of war in order to address key theoretical dilemmas that have recently emerged in the field of transitional justice. I focus on closely connected debates over the exclusion of socioeconomic justice, the relationship between international, national and local actors, the role of transitional justice discourse, and ultimately, the future of the field itself. Based on fieldwork undertaken in Kampala, the Acholi district and the temporary international arena created in Kampala for the 2010 ICC Review Conference, this thesis traces the role of local, national and international actors in the war itself, the search for peace, and the current post-conflict period. I examine the ways in which actors at all levels narrate the northern conflict and accordingly negotiate and contest the nature, scope and course of post conflict justice. I argue that the struggle for a meaningful approach to transitional justice is global in dimension. The power to define and perform postwar justice is concentrated in the hands of the state. A high risk persists that Uganda's transitional justice policy will prove an empty performance of 'victor's justice.' International and domestic actors alike have shaped and justified the Ugandan Government's self-interested approach and facilitated the dominance of international criminal justice. Conversely, civil society actors at all levels in Uganda draw on transitional justice as a radical language of resistance to fight for meaningful change. As long as it fails to address socioeconomic issues and structural violence however, transitional justice discourse will ultimately fall short of giving political voice to local priorities, and activating long-term social transformation. I argue that the field of transitional justice must be re-envisioned to embrace socioeconomic justice, in order to impel the endless pursuit of a just society. This task will require the collective efforts of a global constellation of actors.

Magister Legum - LLM
Enforced disappearances are a heinous violation of numerous human rights enshrined in many international conventions. However, they have not been adequately addressed in many jurisdictions. This crime is very common within countries on the continent of Africa, which despite having plenty of conflicts, under report cases of enforced disappearances. This research paper investigates the transitional justice mechanisms implemented in Uganda to deal with the phenomenon of enforced disappearances. It analyses the mechanisms implemented by the Government of Uganda and those by Non- Governmental Organisations. The paper examines also how the phenomenon of enforced disappearances has been dealt with in other countries such as Morocco, Kenya and South Africa. The paper suggests several recommendations to Uganda after having made a comparison with the selected countries on how to deal with the crime of enforced disappearances.

Magister Legum - LLM (Criminal Justice and Procedure)
Enforced disappearances are a heinous violation of numerous human rights enshrined in many international conventions. However, they have not been adequately addressed in many jurisdictions. This crime is very common within countries on the continent of Africa, which despite having plenty of conflicts, under report cases of enforced disappearances. This research paper investigates the transitional justice mechanisms implemented in Uganda to deal with the phenomenon of enforced disappearances. It analyses the mechanisms implemented by the Government of Uganda and those by Non- Governmental Organisations. The paper examines also how the phenomenon of enforced disappearances has been dealt with in other countries such as Morocco, Kenya and South Africa. The paper suggests several recommendations to Uganda after having made a comparison with the selected countries on how to deal with the crime of enforced disappearances.

Thesis (MA (Political Science))--University of Stellenbosch, 2010.
ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Based on the work of leading theorists within peace and conflict studies, this thesis develops a theoretical framework in order to analyse the seemingly deadlocked ‘peace vs. justice’ debate to explore the possibility of expanding the perspectives in a combined approach. It finds that the debate is based on a narrow perception of both concepts, where they are perceived as negotiations and punishment respectively. Only through applying such a combined approach is it thereby possible to move beyond this current situation. This theoretical framework is then applied on the case of the ongoing conflict in Northern Uganda, where the empirical aspects of this debate have lasted for the longest period of time since the International Criminal Court’s involvement in 2004. With basis in the Juba peace agreement from 2008 that would have balanced retributive and restorative forms of justice, this study finds that the only way to create sustainable peace is by striking a balance between the transitional justice mechanisms of the ICC, conditional amnesties and more traditional forms of justice in the affected communities in Northern Uganda.
AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Op grond van die werk van voorste teoretici op die gebied van vrede- en konflikstudie, ontwikkel hierdie tesis teoretiese raamwerk vir die ontleding van die oënskynlik vasgevalle debat tussen vrede en geregtigheid, ten einde die moontlike verbreding van perspektiewe met behulp van 'n gekombineerde benadering te ondersoek. Die studie bevind dat die debat tussen vrede en geregtigheid op 'n baie eng opvatting van dié twee konsepte berus, naamlik dié van onderhandeling en straf onderskeidelik. Slegs deur 'n gekombineerde benadering toe te pas, is dit dus moontlik om die huidige toedrag van sake te bowe te kom. Die teoretiese raamwerk van die studie is vervolgens op die voortslepende konflik in Noord-Uganda toegepas, waar die empiriese aspekte van dié debat steeds sedert die betrokkenheid van die Internasionale Strafhof in 2004 voorkom. Met die Juba-vredesooreenkoms van 2008 as uitgangspunt, wat veronderstel was om 'n balans te vind tussen vergeldende en herstellende vorme van geregtigheid, bevind dié studie dat volhoubare vrede slegs bereik kan word deur 'n gebalanseerde kombinasie van die Internasionale Strafhof se oorgangsgeregtigheidsmeganisme, voorwaardelike amnestie, en meer tradisionele vorme van geregtigheid in die geaffekteerde Noord-Ugandese gemeenskappe.

Doctor Legum - LLD
Uganda and her citizens have endured a troubled, violent, conflict-prone history since independence from the British on 9th October 1962. Conflict in Uganda, just like in many an African country, has its primary root causes in the colonial legacy which sowed a fertile ground for several other secondary causes of present day subsisting conflicts. During Uganda's various military conflicts millions have had their human rights and civil liberties violated with impunity. At the end of each conflict and / or crisis, Uganda has had to grapple with the challenge of finding a lasting solution amidst the significant losses made by the country, many ethnic groups and her citizens. No long term viable and efficient solution or mechanism has been introduced or instituted to forestall future conflicts. What appears to have been introduced or instituted are stopgap measures. Since President Yoweri Museveni took over power on 26 January 1986, a military conflict has been raging in northern Uganda and the surrounding areas spanning eastern Uganda, South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo (hereafter: 'DRC'), the Sudan and the Central African Republic (hereafter: 'CAR'). In this decades-old conflict, the war has primarily pitted the Lord's Resistance Army (hereafter: 'LRA') against the Uganda Peoples Defence Forces (hereafter: 'UPDF'). Like many conflicts, the more than twenty-year-old contestation has resulted in the gross violations of human rights of millions of people situated across five African states. The human rights violations, which have resulted in the commission of international crimes have been perpetrated and perpetuated with impunity by both warring parties (LRA and UPDF). Although initially an internal conflict, the conflict in northern Uganda has catapulted itself into an international conflict based on the parties involved, the interest generated, the crimes committed and the areas and people affected by it.

Since the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) establishment in 2002, its interventions in African situations have produced a mix of results. Whereas many observers have hailed the ICC’s forays onto the continent for expanding the avenues of justice for mass atrocities, there are also political connotations to some of its interventions, as evidenced in narratives of selectivity and neo-colonialism. Building on the latter impacts of the Court’s interventions in Africa, this thesis seeks to discern the shape of local/regional uptake of international criminal justice (ICJ). This follows from contrasting the ICC’s qualification as a moral agent in the global war on impunity for international crimes, with domestic political translations of the Court’s interventions and subsequent collective action at local and regional levels. Thus, the principal argument from this thesis is that contextual normative adaptions produce global-local exchanges that result in viable conditions under which the ICC’s interventions are politicized, to the detriment of its investigative activities and legacy in situation countries. More specifically, elite level exchanges in sub-national, national, regional and international realms produce blends of local and global realities, resulting into the ICC’s exposure to politicization. These findings are instructive for wider debates on the subtle ways in which the ICC is undermined (rather than outright defiance), with spiralling effects on long term peace-building and other regional contexts. In discerning the aforementioned conclusions, I asked the simple research questions: (1) why and how is an ostensibly international legal response to heinous crimes susceptible to (mis)appropriation and subversion by domestic political elites? (2) what are the far-reaching consequences of politicizing the ICC’s interventions on creating conditions for lasting peace in fragile societies? Given the duality of the ICC’s politicization – through (mis)appropriation and subversion, the thesis adopted a comparative study of Uganda and Kenya, which exemplify the two forms of domestic translations of ICJ. The thesis employed a qualitative methodological approach that drew upon secondary data sources, as well as primary data collected through personal key informant interviews in the Netherlands, Uganda and Kenya, with ICC officials, politicians, government officials, representatives of local and international organizations and affected communities. Some of the secondary data sources include: journal articles, media reports, government documents, books, online sources, legal instruments, the ICC’s documents and official speeches. The data collected was analyzed through grounded theory, in which evidence collected raised new sub-questions for further interrogation. All available evidence was then triangulated to develop a critical analysis of the research questions posed. Conceptually, I built on three interrelated concepts (the ICC’s projection of a moral universe, the narrative lens and spatial hierarchies) to discern the ICJ norm diffusion in local/regional contexts. The thesis concludes that the various forms of political resistance to the ICC have pernicious effects on peace-building beyond national boundaries. Perhaps, a greater degree of the Court’s acceptance will be driven by its proactive steps towards the universality of justice, whose absence partly informed the construction of narratives on some of its foremost interventions in Africa.

Transitional justice has undergone tremendous shifts since it was first used in Latin American and Eastern European countries to address post-authoritarian and post-communist legacies of atrocity and repression. In particular, the establishment of the International Criminal Court (ICC) has increased the demand for prosecutions within a field that was previously marked by compromise and non-prosecution. While there are increasing expectations that countries with unresolved claims of human rights abuses should enact transitional justice policies, most of the literature on the subject largely omits to explain how elites from those countries choose among the possible options of transitional justice, and specifically, how they choose among international prosecutions, domestic prosecutions, and truth-seeking. Using case studies of Kenya and Uganda, this dissertation examines this decision-making process to understand how elites choose and reject different transitional justice policies. Theoretically, the research examines how preferences for transitional justice policies are constituted through “judicial statecraft”: the strategic efforts by heterogeneous, interest-pursuing elites to use justice-related policies as carrots and sticks in the overall contestation of power. The research finds that the choices of elites about judicial statecraft depend on three factors: the extent to which the elites are secure that their policy choices cannot be subverted from within; the cost and credibility of transitional justice threats; and the effects, both intended and unintended, of history.

This thesis examines how the promise and institutionalization of 'justice for victims' has shaped the ICC's justice vision and identity. Drawing on interviews with 90 practitioners in The Hague, Kenya and Uganda, it undertakes a sociological and institutional analysis of how 'justice for victims' has evolved in the Court's first two decades through the definitions and redefinitions, pushes and pulls, strategies and miscalculations of the Court's diverse actors both in The Hague and in the field. It argues that the introduction of 'justice for victims' has led to a rift within the Court between those who embrace a narrow understanding of justice as 'fair trials' and those who see the ICC as an opening for broader justice processes. These rifts and gaps are reinforced by the Court's actors in the field such as victims' lawyers and intermediaries who sometimes assume political advocacy roles beyond what the Court's judges envisaged or follow their parochial interests on the ground. While the ICC's judges have increasingly curtailed victim participation and reparation in the court room, the Court's practices on the ground reflect an uneasy fusion of legal justice, development, local and national politics with a proliferation of new justice concepts including 'transformative justice' and 'gender justice'. So far, these justice contestations have not chipped away, much less undermined, the Court's legitimacy. Rather, the Court has thrived on its justice contradictions; its failure to commit to any particular justice vision while loosely relating to all possible visions, has made the Court impervious to critique. But the thesis will also show that 'justice for victims' at the ICC is schizophrenic: it is inherently unstable and its contradictory dynamics may at some point rip the concept apart - and with it the Court's legitimacy.

This study seeks to answer the questions that arise when applying the UN framework to the existing post-conflict situation in Northern Uganda, while at the same time contributing to the discourse on the right to reparation in international law.
A Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Prof S. Tindifa, Human Rights and Peace Centre (HURIPEC), Faculty of Law, Makerere University, Uganda.
Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa))--University of Pretoria, 2009.
http://www.chr.up.ac.za/
Centre for Human Rights
LLM

Magister Legum - LLM (Criminal Justice and Procedure)
Transitional justice mechanisms have become commonplace as a tool for recovery for societies emerging from conflict and repressive regimes. The extent to which women's rights concerning development and long-term economic advancement in the arena of transitional justice is dealt with is almost negligible. The significance of including development as a means of protecting marginalised groups such as women has been mostly disregarded in the transitional justice context. Currently, the discourse on gender justice has placed civil and political rights as well as sexual crimes against women at the centre stage. Transitional justice mechanisms have failed to give effect to long-term sustainable and substantive change in women's lives following conflict and periods of repressive rule. The core aims of transitional justice are prosecution of offenders, reconciliation and reparations for the victims of gross human rights abuses. Reparations are usually used as a medium through which restitution and compensation for the harm suffered by victims are made possible. Reparations are also deemed as an essential element for the healing and recovery of the individual victim and the society affected by egregious human rights violations.

The prohibition on the use of child soldiers is widely recognized. Still, it is estimated that 60,000 children were abducted and forced to take part in the internal armed conflict between the Lord’s Resistance Army and the Government of Uganda. Thus, this study examines how the formerly abducted children have experienced their return and reintegration. The thesis is based on a minor field study conducted in Gulu and aims at investigating whether the provision of remedies aids or hinders their reintegration. Using theories of recognition and a conceptualization of successful reintegration, I analyze the semi-structured interviews with fourteen former abductees and ten other community members. The findings suggest that the process of return is fraught with many challenges. It is concluded that the absence of symbolic and material reparations is an obstacle to successful reintegration and sustainable peace as the lack of recognition can drive future social conflict in Uganda.

Recent debates on transitional justice have concerned whether the field responds to the needs of victims who have suffered serious crimes. At the global level, the International Criminal Court (ICC) serves as the most visible institution of transitional justice and is most famous for its prosecutions of war criminals. Critics of the Court question its relevance to victims and allege that it embodies a Western form of justice, prioritizing retribution over restoration of victims' lives and societies. Often overlooked, however, is the Court's sister organization, the Trust Fund For Victims (TFV). Also established by the Rome Statute, the TFV is mandated to deliver court-ordered reparations to victims as well as to provide assistance to those affected by crimes under ICC jurisdiction. This assistance mandate creates a novel opportunity to reach a wide scope of affected individuals and to bring international justice directly to those who need it most. This thesis reviews research on transitional justice and employs the Trust Fund as a case study of localizing transitional justice through reparative assistance. This study concludes that the reparative assistance, when designed to respond to victims' needs, has material and symbolic significance to victims that meet the goals of transitional justice.

This research seeks to establish a methodology by which transitional justice strategies ought to be incorporated within the International Criminal Court (ICC) framework. The study is based on the situation in Uganda as an example of the state that has a situation and cases before the ICC. The aim of the thesis was achieved through the adoption of a combination of theoretical legal research and the non -doctrinal approaches. This research establishes that the primary responsibility to prosecute persons suspected of violating international law lies with the states. The importance of the concept of individual criminal responsibility, the idea that every person suspected of committing the most serious offences must be held accountable regardless of status. The principle of individual criminal responsibility is further developed with the creation of the ICC. This research clarifies that there are limitations in terms of what prosecutions can achieve during transitional periods; further, that trials in the ICC and national courts can be undertaken together with proceedings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commissions or indigenous mechasims. Such an approach will allow for confines of prosecutions to be addressed. Despite the existence of principles and institutional framework that are intended to ensure individuals are held accountable for the most serious offences of international concern, the majority of individuals are not held accountable. In order for the ICC to operate effectively it would need to seek to go beyond deterrence and retribution. This would require post – conflict states to devise transitional arrangements that compel with the ICC structure. Thus the research recommends that it would be better for judicial and non- judicial measures to be adopted in states that have cases before the ICC. Particularly Uganda must adopt the mato oput method formally as a tool to address the past human rights abuses in Uganda. All persons regardless of whether they have been granted amnesty or not must be held accountable under the mato oput measures. This implies all persons with exception to those that the ICC has issued the warrants of arrest against.
Public, Constitutional and International Law
LL. D.

The present research is the result of the need of evaluation of perceptions of justice of crimes against humanity survivors, in places were accountability was achieved through international tribunals. The opinion of the survivors is a way to achieve conclusions regarding main aspects about the decision on the need of accountability, especially in what concerns the mechanism that should be used. The effectiveness of any mechanism, taking in account the needs of the population will have positive effects, such as reconciliation, peace, the achievement of social rights, truth, emotional healing (both individual and of the community). The method of the investigation is the analysis of empirical datasets that were obtained in regions were international trials took place, such as Sierra Leone and Cambodia (hybrid courts), Rwanda (ad hoc tribunal), Congo and Uganda (International Criminal Court). The data was select by applying and conceptual model that gather the most relevant data (although the data was insufficient) regarding the need of evaluation the perceptions of justice, such as exposure to violence, individual priorities, the need of accountability and the perceptions about the international tribunals. The results reveal the high level of exposure to violence, that socioeconomic priorities are more important than justice, the need of accountability of perpetrators trough criminal procedures, but also a positive awareness of the work of the tribunals regarding effectiveness, justice values and equity. The conclusion demonstrates the need of a holistic approach and complementarity between mechanisms that could respond do victim’s needs (concerning both retributive and restorative justice). There is a general acceptance of international justice, but the lack of legitimacy can affect the results, that can be conditioned by externalization of the tribunals and insufficient knowledge. The social and economic context is an issue that affects the acceptance of the tribunals, but the construction of a legacy and the correct management of victim’s expectations can create guarantees of non-repetition. The accomplishment of transitional justice purposes, such as truth, justice and guarantees of non-repetition have a great role regarding reconciliation, emotional and social healing, but also the creation of social rights and the implementation of democratic processes.
A presente investigação resulta da necessidade de avaliar a perceção de justiça dos sobreviventes de crimes contra a humanidade em regiões em que uma das soluções para a respetiva responsabilização foi a justiça internacional. A opinião da população sobrevivente permite alcançar conclusões sobre os principais aspetos a ter em conta na decisão de responsabilizar, nomeadamente quanto ao método de execução. A efetividade de qualquer mecanismo, que vá ao encontro das necessidades reais da população, terá um efeito positivo em aspetos como a reconciliação, a restauração da paz, a implementação de direitos sociais, a necessidade de apuramento da verdade e na cura emocional, tanto dos indivíduos como da sociedade. A análise partiu do recurso a dados empíricos já existentes em regiões onde foram utilizados tribunais internacionais: na Serra Leoa e no Camboja (tribunais híbridos), no Ruanda (tribunal ad hoc) e no Congo e no Uganda (pelo Tribunal Penal Internacional). Ao conjunto de dados obtidos foi aplicado um método conceptual que agrupou respostas que responderam (ainda que parcialmente, atendendo à escassez de dados) à necessidade de avaliar o sentimento de justiça, partindo da exposição à violência das vítimas, as suas prioridades individuais, a responsabilização dos agressores e as perceções sobre os tribunais. Os resultados permitiram delinear conclusões, como os elevados níveis de violência sofrida, a prevalência das prioridades socioeconómicas em detrimento da justiça, a necessidade de responsabilização dos agressores através do processo criminal, o reconhecimento de uma prestação positiva aos tribunais internacionais relativamente à sua efetividade, justiça e equidade. Em conclusão, existe a necessidade de uma abordagem holística e de complementaridade entre mecanismos que respondam às necessidades de justiça retributiva e restaurativa da população. O recurso à justiça internacional é aceite, mas a legitimidade é um aspeto condicionador de resultados, afetados pela externalização e o desconhecimento. O contexto socioeconómico da região influencia a aceitação dos tribunais, mas a construção de um legado e uma correta gestão de expectativas pode criar condições para que os crimes não se repitam. O cumprimento de objetivos da justiça de transição, como a verdade, a justiça e as garantias de não-repetição constituem metas a alcançar com vista à reconciliação, à cura emocional e social, à criação de direitos sociais e à implementação de um processo democrático.