Transitional Justice, the aftermath of mass violence (2025/2026: Semester 2 – Spring)

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Cursusdoel

After completing this course, students are able to:
  1. Describe the characteristics and challenges of transitions to the beginnings of democracy and civil society. This understanding is not limited to transitions from authoritarian past and post-conflict situations but also involves ‘historical wrongs’ such as colonialism and settler colonialism.
  2. Compare concepts of victors justice, retributive justice, restorative justice, victims rehabilitation.
  3. Research the extent of education on past atrocities, repetition of violence, reoccurrence of conflict and denialism of human rights violations.
  4. Research and understand the effectiveness of Transitional Justice mechanisms.

Students will be assessed on:

1 The active participation in class and through : community engaged projects with a Dutch museum or international court, group assignments & guest-lectures.
2. The understanding and evaluation of the course material through a portfolio.
3. Research and writing skills based on a Transitional Justice related case study.
4. Presentation skills.
5. Ability to identify and present an in-depth understanding & contextualisation of the major debates, theories and historical events related to Transitional Justice.

Vakinhoudelijk

This course introduces students to the interdisciplinary research field of Transitional Justice, which the former UN secretary Kofi Annan in 2004 described as ‘the full range of processes and mechanisms associated with a society’s attempts to come to terms with a legacy of large-scale past abuses in order to ensure accountability serve justice and achieve reconciliation. These may include both judicial and non-non-judicial mechanisms, with different levels of international involvement (or none at all) and individual prosecutions, reparations, truth-seeking, institutional reform, vetting and dismissals or a combination thereof’.

During the 20th century societies have been struggling with the aftermath of mass violence and human rights violations. In coming to terms with this violent past different kinds of reaction patterns can be recognised varying from retributive justice to restorative justice. Retributive justice is perpetrator oriented and could be regarded as a legal response to mass atrocities. Restorative justice on the other hand is victim oriented.

The course explores the aftermath of the Holocaust, the Nuremberg and Tokyo trials etc., the aftermath of colonialism in Africa and Indonesia, the aftermath of communism, truth and reconciliation in South Africa and different types of retributive justice in dealing with the Rwandan genocide. Furthermore, international crimes (genocide, aggression, war crimes, crimes against humanity) are being researched in relation to Transitional Justice. In particular, the acknowledgement of Conflict Related Sexual Violence (CRSV) as a weapon of war is being looked at. Moreover, settlers colonialism (for instance the Canadian Residential Schools) is included from a restorative perspective.

Furthermore, the course looks at the effectiveness of the Transitional Justice mechanisms. Is it possible to measure and evaluate the effectiveness of Transitional Justice on a state level? Statistical outcomes are being presented in this context.

Format

Class meets twice a week in two-hour sessions. There will be guest lectures related to Transitional Justice. Students will share current events in class and participate in an online publication. This will be a small group assignment.

During the course students analyse Transitional Justice from different perspectives and themes in group and plenary discussions and interactive class assignments. The curriculum covers the efficacy of instruments developed in the 20th century for dealing with mass violations of human rights, using the textbook of Olsen, Pyne and Reiter. This textbook assembled data from trials, truth commissions, amnesties, reparations and lustration policies from 1970 till 2007 to explore the ‘effectiveness in achieving primary goals of strengthening democracy and reducing human rights violations’. Research articles will be provided to deepen students insight into specific cases, transitional justice topics and themes.

In addition, the course is devoted to an individual case study related to an event, region or country. Students will set up and conduct their own research project. Students learn how to develop their research question, how to identify the relevant theory and apply it to their specific research topic and how to trace and use the necessary sources. Students present the outcome of their case-study during class and conclude it in a final paper.



Werkvormen

UCU hum 3 course

Toetsing

Participation

Verplicht | Weging 10% | ECTS 0,75

Reseach: essay

Verplicht | Weging 25% | ECTS 1,88

Community Engaged Project

Verplicht | Weging 20% | ECTS 1,5

Portfolio

Verplicht | Weging 10% | ECTS 0,75

Presentation: research

Verplicht | Weging 5% | ECTS 0,38

*midterm FEEDBACK*

Niet verplicht

Written exam

Verplicht | Weging 30% | ECTS 2,25

Ingangseisen en voorkennis

Voertalen

  • Engels

Competenties

  • Leren In Community’s

Cursusmomenten

Gerelateerde studies

Tentamens

Er is geen tentamenrooster beschikbaar voor deze cursus

Verplicht materiaal

  • READER
    Articles and literature on relevant theory and cases will be provided.
  • DIVERSE
    A community engaged project will be part of the course. Students will travel once or twice to a relevant museum or international court. In 2024 the Transitional Justice students will collaborate with the National Holocaust Museum in Amsterdam. (Travel expenses and tickets for scholarship students will be covered)

Aanbevolen materiaal

Er is geen informatie over de aanbevolen literatuur bekend

Coördinator

P. van den Boomgaard c.p.vandenboomgaard@uu.nl

Docenten

P. van den Boomgaard c.p.vandenboomgaard@uu.nl

Inschrijving

Let op: deze cursus is niet toegankelijk voor studenten van andere faculteiten, bijvakkers mogen zich dus niet inschrijven.

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