Atrocities and International Accountability Beyond Transnational Justice

Rebuilding societies where conflict has occurred is rarely a simple process; but where conflict has been accompanied by gross and systematic violations of human rights the procedure becomes fraught with controversy. The traditional debate on 'transitional justice' sought to balance justice, truth, accountability, and peace and stability. The appearance of impunity for past crimes undermines confidence in new democratic structures and casts doubt upon commitments to human rights. Yet the need to consolidate peace sometimes resulted in reluctance on the part of authorities-both local and international-to confront suspected perpetrators of human rights violations, especially when they were a part of the peace process. Experience in many regions of the world therefore suggested a trade-off between peace and justice.Hughes, Edel is the author of 'Atrocities and International Accountability Beyond Transnational Justice', published 2007 under ISBN 9789280811414 and ISBN 928081141X.