New Offer: Online Short Courses in Transitional Justice

Enough Project

10 August 2020

For the upcoming 2020-2021 academic year, we are offering two new online short courses in transitional justice.

‘These two online courses are designed for human rights practitioners and professionals working in post-conflict or post-authoritarian contexts who wish to acquire an extensive knowledge of international human rights law (IHRL) in transitions’ explains Thomas Unger, Co-Director of the MAS in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law (MTJ) at the Geneva Academy.

Unpacking the Nature and Scope of Human Rights in Transitions

The first online course on human rights and transitional justice aims at unpacking the nature and scope of IHRL in transitional contexts by notably addressing the application of both civil and political rights as well as economic, social and cultural rights in transitional justice processes.

‘The objective of this course – besides mapping the human rights law framework of transitional justice – is to discuss the limits and possibilities of IHRL in addressing the challenges arising in times of war and repression, as well as how this body of law deals with the legacy of mass atrocities’ explains Frank Haldemann, Co-Director of the MTJ.

Given by Professor Clara Sandoval, a renowned expert in transitional justice, the course will also cover the ‘core’ rights (to truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence) of the international fight against impunity, as well as concrete experiences and challenges in contemporary transitional contexts.

The course runs from 15 September to 14 October 2020 and comprises six classes of 2:45 (running from 13:15 to 16:00) in the afternoons of 15, 16, 22, 23 September and 13, 14 October.

Human Rights Protection and Social Protest Movements

The second online course on the right to life and the right to peaceful assembly in transition examines the protection afforded by IHRL in contexts where social protest movements are at the forefront of demands for political transitions and changes of regimes.

‘Recent examples in Tunisia, Egypt, Syria or South Sudan show the crucial role played by social protests in transitions, but also the violent repression they might face by the police or the army. These situations highlight the relevance of the right to peaceful assembly – which is at the heart of such movements –, and the right to life – which is often violated during such transitional moments’ underlines Thomas Unger.

Given by Professor Christof Heyns – a leading expert on this issue and the former UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions – the course will address the scope and limits of the right to life and the right of peaceful assembly and their relevance and application in relation to the kind of violence that often accompanies transitions.

The course runs from 2 to 9 December 2020 and comprises seven classes of 1:45 in the afternoons of 2, 4, 8 and 9 December.

Part of the MAS in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law

These two online courses form an integral part of the MAS in Transitional Justice, Human Rights and the Rule of Law at the Geneva Academy. They have been opened to external participants – who will join students enrolled in the programme.

‘Practitioners will therefore join our students for these specific courses: we will have a large diversity of profiles and experiences – as most of our students have worked in transitional contexts – which promises enriching and interesting exchanges and discussions’ says Frank Haldemann.