Right to Truth, Truth/s through Rights

After an initial 4-years period and a 2-years extension, our interdisciplinary research project comes to an end. We would like to thank our funder, SNF FNS SNSF, our host Université de Genève, and our swiss and international partners, including Geneva Academy of International Humanitarian Law and Human Rights , International Committee of the Red Cross , and TRIAL International.

If you want to hear about the next stages of our members’ research on , follow our researchers on Twitter/Facebook or LinkedIn: Sévane Garibian, Zahira Araguete, Tafadzwa Christmas, Camille Montavon, Adriana Sdr, and Marion Vironda Dubray.

Right to truth, truth(s) through rights : mass crimes impunity and transitional justice This research project addresses the following question : if in the framework of transitional justice the right to truth constitutes the first pillar of the “fight against impunity” for mass crimes, and supposes a state obligation to investigate, what meaning and what function does it have in con...

charges police officers with over 2017 violence via

Kenya charges police with crimes against humanity over 2017 violence In a landmark decision, Kenyan prosecutors said on Friday they would charge police officers with crimes against humanity over a deadly crackdown on post-election protests in 2017. The charges cover r**e, murder and torture and include the case of a six-month-old baby girl whose death became a symbol...

A year and a half after his final acquittal by the International Criminal Court (ICC), where he was tried for crimes against humanity, Charles Blé Goudé will return to Côte d'Ivoire on November 26 via

Côte d’Ivoire : Charles Blé Goudé de retour le 26 novembre – Jeune Afrique L’ancien ministre de Laurent Gbagbo, accusé de crimes contre l’humanité, a été acquitté il y a un an et demi par la Cour pénale internationale. Après de longues négociations avec Alassane Ouattara, il a décidé de revenir à Abidjan le 26 novembre. – Jeune Afrique

: even though they were not yet born when the 1994 occurred, many Rwandans under the age of 30 suffer from trauma, as a result of the suffering of their parents who survived the genocide via

Au Rwanda, le traumatisme du génocide se transmet de génération en génération « L’Afrique en thérapie » (7). De nombreux Rwandais de moins de 30 ans souffrent d’un traumatisme dit « transgénérationnel » ou « indirect » : ils présentent des séquelles psychologiques liées au génocide.

: A collective of artists is demanding that the remains of seven Congolese Pygmies, unearthed by the Geneva doctor Boris Adé in the 1950s, and now kept at the University of Geneva, be returned to the Congo for a dignified burial via

Restes humains – Les squelettes de sept Pygmées conservés à Genève font polémique Dans «Le Retour des fantômes», un collectif d’artistes réclame que les corps, déterrées par le médecin genevois Boris Adé dans les années 50, retournent au Congo pour y être inhumés dignement.

Coding Justice? The Tradeoffs of Using Technology for Documenting Crimes in via

Coding Justice? The Tradeoffs of Using Technology for Documenting Crimes in Ukraine [Raquel Vazquez Llorente is the Head of Law and Policy, Technology Threats & Opportunities, at WITNESS. Wendy Betts is the Executive Director of eyeWitness, initiated by the International Bar A…

, a former Dutch colony, has asked the to return eight works of art and natural history collections from several Dutch museums, including the fossil remains of the Java Man, the first homo erectus ever unearthed, via

L’Indonésie demande aux musées des Pays-Bas de rendre les œuvres Cette demande concerne huit œuvres d’art et des collections d’histoire naturelle.

: Top Former Military Officers Arrested for 1982 Murder of Four Dutch Journalists via

Top Former Military Officers Arrested for 1982 Murder of Four Dutch Journalists General Guillermo García, the minister of defense and strongman of the Salvadoran Army in the early 1980s, has been detained for his alleged responsibility in the murder of four Dutch journalists in 1982, members of the judicial branch involved in the case and two relatives of the victims confirmed...

: A Serb man faces extradition from after being arrested for in relation to his alleged involvement in killing 33 people in the Kosovo town of Peja/Pec during the war in 1999 via

Hungary Arrests Serb for Alleged Kosovo War Crimes A Serb man faces extradition from Hungary after being arrested in Budapest for his alleged involvement in killing 33 people in the Kosovo town of Peja/Pec during the war in 1999.

: reports on the issues and questions raised by the French policy and practice regarding the restitutions of colonial-era artworks and human remains

France Returned 24 Skulls to Algeria. They Weren’t What They Seemed. The restitution of the remains, said to belong to 19th-century freedom fighters, was hailed as a symbol of reconciliation, but papers obtained by The Times reveal a gesture muddled by politics.

Is there a right methodology to document in , , or ? via with and

Is there a right methodology to document war crimes in Myanmar, Syria, Iraq or Ukraine? “Don’t over document” warned the International Criminal Court (ICC) Prosecutor Karim Khan in a recent meeting held in The Hague with Eurojust, in an address to civil society organizations, referring to situations in Myanmar, Syria, Iraq and Ukraine where overconcentration of international acto...

: The Center for the History of the Resistance and Deportation (CHRD) in Lyon is working to update the images of the 1987 trial of **i Klaus Barbie to show parts of the 185-hours recording of the first trial in France

A Lyon, le défi d'une nouvelle version des images du procès Barbie Le Centre d'histoire de la Résistance et de la déportation (CHRD) de Lyon, qui fête ses 30 ans, s'emploie à réactualiser les images historiques du procès en 1987 du n**i Klaus Barbie, "le boucher de Lyon", une gageure. Il faudra plus d'un an de travail encore pour finaliser une nouvelle versio...

Even though is not a party to the , could send Russian suspects to the , if trials could not take place in Ukraine for legal reasons, ICC chief prosecutor Karim Khan said, via

Ukraine could extradite Russians to ICC: prosecutor Ukraine could extradite Russian war crimes suspects to the International Criminal Court (ICC) even though Moscow is not a member, the tribunal's prosecutor said on Thursday. Kyiv authorities could send Russians to the Hague-based court if trials could not take place in Ukraine for legal reasons, ICC...

is accelerating in , but efforts should be extended to all violations observed on the international scene, says TRIAL International's director, Philip Grant as the Swiss NGO celebrates its 20th anniversary

L'Ukraine accélère la compétence universelle en Suisse selon Trial Les crimes en Ukraine changent la donne pour les efforts en Suisse sur la compétence universelle, selon TRIAL International. Alors que l'ONG genevoise fête ses 20 ans, elle appelle à élargir cette volonté à toutes les violations observées sur la scène internationale. Le Ministère public de ...

: OHCHR's report based on UN Monitoring Mission's findings confirms litany of serious violations committed mostly by but expresses concerns about Ukraine’s administration of in war-related trials via

UN points to Russian crimes and Ukraine justice challenges Russia’s ongoing war in Ukraine has led to a litany of serious abuses against both civilians and combatants, mostly by the Russian side, confirms a recent report based on the findings of the UN Human Rights Monitoring Mission in Ukraine. The UN also expresses some concerns about Ukraine’s admini...

"Is it necessary to deny everything if you are accused of international crimes?": director of , Alain Werner, reflects on the role of defense lawyers in the quest for truth and justice for via

Est-il nécessaire de tout nier si on est accusé de crimes internationaux? OPINION. Ils sont accusés – et condamnés – pour des crimes de guerre, des crimes contre l’humanité en Afrique de l'Ouest, mais ne les reconnaissent pas, même partiellement, explique l'avocat Alain Werner. Sauf si leur avocat, comme Me François Roux, les accompagne sur la voie de la demand...

: today, in opens the trial of former rebel commander Kunti Kamara, who is accused of , including r**e and forced labour, during the first Liberian civil war via

Crimes contre l’humanité au Liberia : un procès inédit en France Pour la première fois, une cour d’assises française va juger des crimes contre l’humanité commis dans les années 1990 pendant la guerre civile au Liberia.

: in a tight vote, members of Human Rights Council reject proposal to hold a debate on human rights violations against minorities, including in via Geneva Solutions

Human Rights Council shuts down China debate proposal in close vote - Geneva Solutions A Western-led proposal to hold a debate on alleged human rights abuses committed in Xinjiang was defeated on Thursday at the Human Rights Council in a tight vote of 19 states against, 17 in favour and 11 abstentions. The vote was followed by a burst of applause from some delegates in the room. The d...

: abduction and forcible transfer of for adoption in not only constitutes violations of & international law bt may also be considered a , argues Alison Bisset

lieber.westpoint.edu

: More than 40 bodies found in a recently exhumed , reports the Libyan authority on via

More than 40 bodies found in Libya mass grave: Authorities Forty-two bodies have been found in a mass grave in the Libyan city of Sirte, an ex-stronghold of the ISIS extremist group, the country’s missing persons

Today, doctoral researcher Marion Vironda Dubray gives a guest lecture on the diverse understandings of for , as part of the course "Introduction to " given by Prof. Sévane Garibian in the Geneva Academy's Master in Transitional Justice, and the Rule of Law (MTJ) https://www.geneva-academy.ch/masters/master-in-transitional-justice/programme/presentation

: Hope for fades 9 months after 's report via

Gambia: hopes for justice fades 9 months after the Truth Commission report Victims and rights activists have raised concerns about the lack of Gambian government’s implementation plan of the 2021 Truth Commission’s recommendations. The vetting process is largely incomplete; the strategy for trials is unknown; the reparations budget is postponed. And there seems to be n...

: trial of top suspect and financier Félicien started yesterday before the Residual Mechanism for the Criminal Tribunals via

Top Rwanda genocide suspect Kabuga goes on trial Alleged Rwandan genocide financier Felicien Kabuga goes on trial in The Hague on Thursday, one of the last main suspects in the 1994 ethnic slaughter that shocked the world.

: commemorating the 8th anniversary of the "43 of ", families of the disappeared students continue to call for justice via

Las familias de los 43 de Ayotzinapa piden justicia en un Zócalo blindado La investigación del caso ha avanzado en las últimas semanas con nuevas revelaciones y detenidos, pero los resultados judiciales no están siendo los que esperaban las familias

: in a draft decision, Western countries call for a debate at the next session of the United Nations Human Rights Council to discuss China’s alleged rights abuses against and other minorities in the region via

Western countries call for UN human rights debate on China’s Xinjiang - Geneva Solutions The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Iceland and Norway backed the “draft decision” tabled on Monday that seeks a debate during the council’s next session, which begins in February. The move follows the release of a much-anticipated UN report last month that...

: President Zelenskiy says two more mass burial sites were found in , while more than 400 persons - some of them with signs of torture - have been exhumed from other sites via

Ukraine's Zelenskiy says two more burial sites found in liberated Izium Ukraine has discovered two more mass burial sites containing the bodies of hundreds of people in the northeastern town of Izium, which Kyiv recaptured from Russia this month, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said.

's Khmer Rouge Tribunal concludes after 16 years, after it reaffirmed Khieu Samphan’s conviction and life sentence for , and via

Khmer Rouge Tribunal Ends Work After 16 Years, 3 Judgments The tribunal reaffirmed the life sentence Khieu Samphan received after being convicted in 2018 of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Busloads of Cambodians, including survivors of the Khmer Rouge's brutality, watched the final proceedings in court Thursday.

: in its report to , UN Fact Finding mission concludes Venezuela’s intelligence agencies are committing , including torture and forms of sexual violence, as part of a plan orchestrated at the highest level of government to repress dissent via Geneva Solutions

Venezuela committing crimes against humanity to crush dissent, UN report finds - Geneva Solutions In a report released on Tuesday, a group of UN experts tasked with investigating alleged violations in Venezuela said it had uncovered how members of the intelligence services worked with President Nicolás Maduro and other high level officials to target and torture perceived opponents of the govern...

and 's Office of the Prosecutor issue Guidelines to assist civil society organisations to collect and preserve information on and violations and ensuring their admissibility as court evidence

Documenting International Crimes and Human Rights Violations for Criminal Accountability Purposes: Guidelines for Civil Society Organisations These guidelines aim to assist civil society organisations to collect and preserve information related to international crimes and human rights violations, which may become admissible evidence in court. A series of proposed ‘do’s and don’ts’ are provided, on what may be helpful and what coul...