International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) and grassroots mobilization for justice: Insights from Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Abstract

Despite the fact that transitional justice measures have become established components of almost all modern peace-building efforts, the existing understandings of complex causal pathways that link transitional justice interventions to their supposed goal of reconciliation in deeply divided societies continue to remain largely underspecified and undertheorized. This article empirically investigates the impact of the International Criminal Tribunal for former Yugoslavia (ICTY) on reconciliation in Prijedor, Bosnia and Herzegovina. After a detailed process-tracing study of reconciliation in town, it proposes that ICTY has contributed to intergroup reconciliation via the mechanism of grassroots mobilization for justice.

Transitional Justice and Reconciliation in the Western Balkans: Approaches, Impacts and Challenges

“…Trials ▪ Studies on the impacts of international criminal trials conclude that they have either failed to promote reconciliation, or have hindered this process (Strupinskienė, 2020;see Hehir, 2019).…”

“…▪ Research conducted in Prijedor, BiH, finds that the political space created by the conviction and removal of high level political and military leaders can eventually open up opportunities for inter-ethnic collaboration (Zyberi & Letnar Černič, 2015; Strupinskienė, 2020).…”

“…Despite high expectations for the impacts of criminal trials, the ICTY's record of achieving justice and reconciliation in the former Yugoslavia has been criticised, with many studies concluding that it either failed to promote reconciliation, or hindered this process (Strupinskienė, 2020;see Hehir, 2019). A key issue cited in the literature is that the ICTY lacked local legitimacy, due in large part to its physical distance from the former Yugoslavia and the lack of engagement with people on the ground (Hehir, 2019).…”

“…Various scholars have also critiqued the ICTY (and criminal trials generally) for inadequately addressing the needs of victims, through a focus on the perpetrators and legal procedures that prevented victims from telling their stories, undermining their sense of agency (Sivac-Bryant, 2016;cited in Strupinskienė, 2020). Lack of outreach (early on), poor witness protection and insufficient reparations are other factors that hindered the tribunal from truly addressing the needs of victims (see Strupinskienė, 2020). Criticism has also been raised with respect to the ICTY's ability to punish the perpetrators, in terms of slow and time-consuming processes, lenient sentences, and many perpetrators remaining unpunished (Strupinskienė, 2020;O'Reilly, 2016).…”

“…Lack of outreach (early on), poor witness protection and insufficient reparations are other factors that hindered the tribunal from truly addressing the needs of victims (see Strupinskienė, 2020). Criticism has also been raised with respect to the ICTY's ability to punish the perpetrators, in terms of slow and time-consuming processes, lenient sentences, and many perpetrators remaining unpunished (Strupinskienė, 2020;O'Reilly, 2016).…”