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Transitional Justice and Peace Building Research Cluster (TJPR)

Transitional Justice and Peace Building Research Cluster (TJPR)

TJPR cover image

Cluster Leader:

Dr Anita Ferrara

Transitional Justice and Peace Building Research Cluster (TJPR)

The Transitional Justice and Peacebuilding research cluster promotes research, debate, and discussion about justice, law and peacebuilding in post-conflict and post-authoritarian countries.

The research cluster is an interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary space that brings together different fields of inquiry to critically analyse the complexities of justice after massive human rights violations. Societies in transition must take difficult ethical, legal, and political decisions to restore peace and stability, avoid relapsing into conflict and guarantee justice and accountability to victims and society.

For this reason, the research cluster aims to problematise the multiple conceptions of justice in post-conflict societies. It incorporates critical perspectives that challenge the orthodox liberal theories of justice and build bridges with theories of justice from the Global South. It brings together the fields of restorative justice, memory studies, archival studies, and reparative justice.

The cluster promotes empirical research that provides an in-depth analysis of case studies and a deeper understanding of how Transitional Justice is constructed and perceived by the communities and people that aim to benefit.

Current projects include case studies from Colombia, Liberia, and Central America. Other research projects focus on the uses of human rights archives for developing transitional justice and transnational human rights cases.

Current Projects

Recent Publications

Thursday, 24 October 2024

Dr Anita Ferrara Publishes New Open Access Article on the Role of Memory Sites in Times of Crisis in Chile

We are pleased to announce the publication of Dr Anita Ferrara's latest article in the Memory Studies Journal titled "When the Past Meets the Present: The Role of Memory Sites in Times of Crisis in Chile." It is available in open access here: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/17506980241283891 Dr Anita Ferrara is the Cluster Leader of the Transitional Justice and Peace Building Research Cluster (TJPR) at University of Galway School of Law.

Thursday, 1 February 2024

PhD Researcher ‘Professional Visitor’ at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights

Our PhD Researcher and IRC Scholar Beatrice Canossi recently concluded her professional visit at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights (Costa Rica).  During her three months as ‘professional visitor’ at the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, Beatrice worked alongside practitioners expanding her knowledge on the jurisprudence and functioning of this key regional human rights body. She had the chance to participate in the court’s hearings, deepening her understanding of the Inter-American system and working on court cases. She is grateful for this excellent opportunity and to all the staff of the Court which have welcomed her with professionalism, creating an exciting and fulfilling work environment. During her time at the Court Beatrice had the possibility to witness the pivotal role played by the Court at a regional and international level. She was particularly impressed by its work interpreting the American Convention on Human Rights as a living instrument to fulfil the Court’s important role in protecting human rights within the region. Watch this video of Beatrice talking about her experience