To date, an estimated 9 million Syrians have fled their homes since the beginning of the conflict in 2011. While over 3 million have fled to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, 6.5 million are internally displaced within Syria. Whereas most research has focused on examining Syrian refugees’ status and living conditions in host countries; few studies aimed to document their views and perceptions about transitional justice processes, including reparation issues and how they perceived a durable and sustainable peace in Syria. This paper focuses on Syrian refugees and displaced persons’ role and contribution to transitional justice processes. It explores their views and perceptions about a wide range of political, civil, social, economic and cultural issues, including accountability, reparation, the nature of the future governance system, Syria’s cultural identity, the rights of minorities and women, reconstruction and development priorities and Demilitarization, Demobilization and Reintegration (ddr) issues.
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Migration Policy Centre, “Syrian Refugees: A Snapshot of the Crisis,” European University Institute, October 2014, http://syrianrefugees.eu/.
Clara Sandoval Villalba, “Transitional Justice: Key Concepts, Processes and Challenges,” Institute for Democracy and Conflict Resolution, Briefing paper, July 2011, 2.
Paul Collier and Anke Hoeffler, “The Challenge of Reducing the Global Incidence of Civil War,” Copenhagen Consensus 2004, 26 March 2004, 1–30.
Alexander Boraine, “Transitional Justice: A Holistic Interpretation,” Journal of International Affairs 60, no. 1 (2006): 17–27.
Lucy Hovil and Joanna Quinn, “Peace First, Justice Later: Transitional Justice in Northern Uganda,” Refugee Law Project, Working paper no. 17, July 2005.
Bradley 2012, 12–13.
Advocates for Human Rights, “A House with Two Rooms: Final Report of the Liberia Truth and Reconciliation Commission Diaspora Project,” The Advocates for Human Rights (Saint Paul, mn: dri Press, 2009).
Bradley 2012, 5. As noted earlier, international and domestic tribunals such as International Criminal Tribunal for Former Yugoslavia (icty) and Cambodia’s tribunal prosecute forced migration as a legal violation. Furthermore, since 1995, dozens of property restitution commissions worldwide have been created in conflict-stricken countries through which hundreds of thousands of displaced persons have reclaimed their lost lands. Furthermore, Argentina, Chile, Guatemala, Peru and Sierra Leone have established reparation programmes. Truth Commissions including those in Liberia and Paraguay have held “satellite” hearings in countries with large diaspora populations, or sent investigators to gather testimony in camps. Also, to promote participation, commissions in Chile, Argentina, and Ecuador allowed members of the diaspora to testify at embassies and consulates worldwide. See Megan Bradley, “Truth-Telling and Displacement: Patterns and Prospects,” Brookings Institution, June 2013, http://www.brookings.edu/research/opinions/2013/06/transitional-justice-displacement-bradley.
Bradley 2012, 17.
Rimmer 2010, 3.
Ben Hubbard, “Momentum Shifts in Syria, Bolstering Assad’s Position,” The New York Times, 17 July 2013, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/18/world/middleeast/momentum-shifts-in-syria-bolstering-assads-position.html.
Stephanie Nebehay, “u.n. says Syria death toll tops 190,000, rights envoy raps world powers,” Reuters, 22 August 2014, http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/08/22/us-syria-crisis-deaths-iduskbn0gm0kh20140822.
Villalba 2011, 8.
Johan Goltung, Peace by Peaceful Means: Peace and Conflict, Development and Civilization (Oslo: International Peace Research Institute, 1996), 70–126.
Tareq al-Abed, “Syria’s Assyrians threatened by extremists,” Al Monitor, 28 April 2014, http://www.al-monitor.com/pulse/ar/security/2014/04/syria-assyrians-threat-crisis.html.
Library of Congress, “Syria Country Profile,” Library of Congress Country Studies, accessed 1 August 2014, http://memory.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/r?frd/cstdy:@field(DOCID+sy0038).
u.s. Department of State, “Syria: International Religious Freedom Report 2006,” u.s. State Department: Diplomacy in Action, accessed 1 July 2014, http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/irf/2006/71432.htm.
Alex Schank, “Sectarianism and Transitional Justice in Syria: Resisting International Trials,” Georgetown Journal of International Law 45 (2014): 557–587.
James Meernik, “Justice and Peace? How the International Tribunal Affects Societal Peace in Bosnia,” Journal of Peace Research 42, no. 3 (2005): 271–289.
All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
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Abstract Views | 877 | 166 | 7 |
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To date, an estimated 9 million Syrians have fled their homes since the beginning of the conflict in 2011. While over 3 million have fled to Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Iraq, 6.5 million are internally displaced within Syria. Whereas most research has focused on examining Syrian refugees’ status and living conditions in host countries; few studies aimed to document their views and perceptions about transitional justice processes, including reparation issues and how they perceived a durable and sustainable peace in Syria. This paper focuses on Syrian refugees and displaced persons’ role and contribution to transitional justice processes. It explores their views and perceptions about a wide range of political, civil, social, economic and cultural issues, including accountability, reparation, the nature of the future governance system, Syria’s cultural identity, the rights of minorities and women, reconstruction and development priorities and Demilitarization, Demobilization and Reintegration (ddr) issues.
All Time | Past Year | Past 30 Days | |
---|---|---|---|
Abstract Views | 877 | 166 | 7 |
Full Text Views | 336 | 20 | 4 |
PDF Views & Downloads | 181 | 43 | 10 |