BUILDING A MOVEMENT FOR TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE IN AFRICA: THE ROLE OF CIVIL SOCIETY AND YOUTH ACTORS

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Yesterday I had the great privilege of connecting with great African minds that contributed to the book, ‘African Union and Transitional Justice: Healing the Past and Restoring Human Dignity,’ that was edited by Prof. Tim Murithi. It was a rich conversation.

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I contributed two chapters to the book.

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In Chapter 6 of the book (Page 85), I reflect on the role of civil society in the implementation of the African Union Transitional Justice Policy (AUTJP) that was adopted by the AU in February 2019. I see the place for civil society and people movements in the 9 principles of the AUTJP, particularly the principles on; ?

·????? National and local ownership,

·????? Inclusivity, equity and non-discrimination,

·????? African shared values

·????? Cooperation and coherence

·????? National leadership.

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I stated that national leadership does not mean state leadership but various communities that make up a nation including people movements that are national and local in nature. This is a nation-building approach to transitional justice. ?I argued that transitional justice is a liberation agenda that seeks through innovation and dialogue to cure the past without duplicating the same atrocities that it seeks to redeem. In our pursuit for justice we must do better than the liberation movements that have now established more violent and repressive systems than the ones they replaced. We can do this by mobilising communities to lead transitional justice and check the excesses of the state. I share in this chapter the examples of the work we did in Zimbabwe when we mobilised for constitutionalisation of transitional justice leading to the establishment of the National Peace and Reconciliation Commission (NPRC). As soon as it became clear that an official process would begin, we established the National Transitional Justice Working Group (NTJWG) to ensure that the people especially survivors and victims remain at the centre of the transitional justice discourse.

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In Chapter 12, I discuss the role of youth actors in transitional justice. This is part of the movement building for transitional justice that I discussed in Chapter 6 but this is also a pro-future approach to building a movement for the future. Ensuring that young people , who more often than not are accused of all sorts of social vices especially violence, are on the right side of history not as mere activists but leaders. To make that happen we must ensure that our young people are prepared for the future that is unfolding through leadership development and knowledge investments. We must use knowledge to deepen their activism beyond merely carrying placards and we must ensure that they remain rooted in the communities that they serve so as not to lose focus. Leadership, authentic leadership is always about the communities. As John Maxwell says, it is about bringing people together in a world that divides.

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Thanks to all the brilliant African minds that joined the session and to Prof. Tim Murithi for making this brilliant resource a reality.

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You can download the book here https://www.ijr.org.za/portfolio-items/african-union-and-transitional-justice/