Transitional Justice In South Asia

Offering a comparative case study of transitional justice processes in Afghanistan and Nepal, this book critically evaluates the way the "local" is consulted in post-conflict efforts toward peace and reconciliation. It argues that there is a tendency in transitional justice efforts to contain the discussion of the "local" within religious and cultural parameters, thus engaging only with a "static local," as interpreted by certain local stakeholders. Based on data collected through interviews and participant observation carried out in the civil societies of the respective countries, this book brings attention to a "dynamic local," where societal norms evolve, and realities on the ground are shaped by shifting power dynamics, local hierarchies, and inequalities between actors. It suggests that the "local" must be understood as an inter-subjective concept, the meaning of which is not only an evolving and moving target, but also dependent on who is consulted to interpret it to external actors. This timely book engages with the divergent range of civil society voices and offers ways to move forward by including their concerns in the efforts to help impoverished war-torn societies transition from a state of war to the conditions of peace.

A first of its kind, Contesting Justice in South Asia provides a series of case studies from South Asia that detail the quest for justice, the links that can be drawn from different countries in the region and the points of contact and divergences in the enunciation and practice of law. A second theme that runs through the book discusses the corrosive and affective power of violence in its ability to forge new solidary groups and communities. This is the first serious attempt by activists and scholars to think of South Asia as a region bound together through war and collective violence. It will be an invaluable read for postgraduate students and scholars of law and society, political philosophy, sociology and anthropology of violence, history and memory as well as political activists and government departments.

This is the first book to provide an overview of the processes and practices of transitional justice in the Asia-Pacific region.

This book offers a South Asian perspective on international law, maintaining a suitable distance from the ‘Western’ approach. The themes discussed reflect the region’s particular contribution to the development of international law. Each South Asian country has its own important role to play in promoting regional trade, regulating maritime affairs, ensuring access to water, debating State responsibility, engaging with International Criminal Court, questioning diplomatic and consular immunities, and, most importantly, upholding human rights. These issues are addressed by local contributors from Nepal, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, who have come together to represent the whole South Asian region on a single academic platform.

Over the last two decades, civil society has helped catalyse responses to the legacies of violent conflicts and oppressive political regimes in Asia and the Pacific. Civil society has advocated for the establishment of criminal trials and truth commissions, monitored their operations and pushed for take-up of their recommendations. It has also initiated community-based transitional justice responses. Yet, there has been little in-depth examination of the breadth and diversity of these roles. This book addresses this gap by analysing the heterogeneity of civil society transitional justice activity in Asia and the Pacific. Based upon empirically grounded case studies of Timor-Leste, Indonesia, Cambodia, Myanmar, Bougainville, Solomon Islands and Fiji, this book illustrates that civil society actors can have different - and sometimes competing - priorities, resources and approaches to transitional justice. Their work is also underpinned by diverse understandings of 'justice'. By reflecting on the richness of this activity, this book advances contemporary debates about transitional justice and civil society. It will also be a valuable resource for scholars and practitioners working on Asia and the Pacific.

A volume of essays on how justice has been denied in various parts of South Asia – India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal.

Reconceiving Civil Society and Transitional Justice examines the role of civil society in transitional justice, exploring the forms of civil society that are enabled or disabled by transitional justice processes and the forms of transitional justice activity that are enabled and disabled by civil society actors. Although civil society organisations play an integral role in the pursuit of transitional justice in conflict-affected societies, the literature lacks a comprehensive conceptualisation of the diversity and complexity of these roles. This reflects the degree to which dominant approaches to transitional justice focus on liberal-legal justice strategies and international human rights norms. In this context, civil society organisations are perceived as intermediaries who are thought to advocate for and support formal, liberal transitional justice processes. The contributions to this volume demonstrate that the reality is more complicated; civil society can - and does - play important roles in enabling formal transitional justice processes, but it can also disrupt them. Informed by detailed fieldwork across Asia and the Pacific Islands, the contributions demonstrate that neither transitional justice or civil society should be treated as taken-for-granted concepts. Demonstrating that neither transitional justice or civil society should be treated as taken-for-granted concepts, Reconceiving Civil Society and Transitional Justice will be of great interest to scholars of Security Studies, Asian Studies, Peacebuilding, Asia Pacific, Human Rights, Reconciliation and the Politics of Memory. The chapters were originally published as a special issue of Global Change, Peace & Security.