On 19 and 20 November 2014, No Peace Without Justice (NPWJ), with the support of the Kawakibi Democracy Transition Center (KADEM), organised in Tunis a seminar on “Transitional Justice: The Transitional Justice Law and its Mechanisms”.

The meeting, which gathered Tunisian and Libyan NGOs, human rights activists and transitional justice experts as well international organisations and representatives from UN Agencies and the diplomatic corps based in Tunisia, aimed at fostering a productive dialogue between Tunisian and Libyan democracy advocates to share experiences and compare the different ways in which transitional justice issues have developed in the two countries. The Tunisian successful experience and the lesson learned accumulated by Tunisian civil society can be a critical factor to develop a concrete political strategy to support the legitimate aspiration of the  Libyan people for security, dignity and democracy.

The seminar contributed to maintain the Libyan civil society community focused on the issue of transitional justice and ensure that advocacy activities can be conducted towards Libyan public institutions, with the aim to ensure that Libyan transitional justice laws are fully implemented. Libya’s political future and long-term stability will be defined by how the post-Gaddafi and post-conflict transition will be managed and how the few seeds of transitional justice mechanisms already implanted in the Libyan legislative system will be supported and helped to grow. These elements play a critical role in developing a new covenant for Libyan citizens and will have serious ramifications for the development of political and societal institutions and their ability to protect and expand the civil and political rights of Libyans.

The values for which the Revolution that ousted Colonel Gaddafi in 2011 was fought need to be  brought back into the political discourse and concretely and strongly supported.

Watch also:

• Transitional justice, a Libyan streets view (Video), No Peace Without Justice in association with Zughaid Production, November 2014

NPWJ project on Libya
NPWJ has been working on the Libyan transition since early 2011, in the framework of its project to support Libya’s democratic transition through justice and accountability. As the country embarks on legislative reforms, the Libyan authorities can break with the legacy of impunity and abuses that typified Gaddafi’s rule with a new respect for the rule of law and a commitment to restoring justice and dignity to victims. Doing so requires not only the investigation and prosecution of the crimes and violence perpetrated during the revolution, but also efforts to confront a history of oppression and human rights abuses that dates back decades under the rule of the former regime.

For further information, please contact  Gianluca Eramo (MENA Program Coordinator) on geramo@npwj.org, or Nicola Giovannini (Press & Public Affairs Coordinator) on ngiovannini@npwj.org or +32-2-548-3915.

For further information on the activities of NPWJ in Libya please contact Giulia Cappellazzi on gcappellazzi@npwj.org, or Enrica Barago on ebarago@npwj.org.