Trial by media: Why victims and activists seek a parallel justice forum for war crimes

Abstract

When the brutal Sri Lankan conflict ended, victims and activists launched global war crimes cases against the state alongside successful media campaigns. Although these justice claims never progressed to a court of law, they were heard, through the media, by the court of public opinion. This article considers to what extent a ‘trial by media’ might have the potential to provide a parallel justice forum. It questions how activists and victims view the role of the media in seeking justice. It finds they perceive the media’s key functions are to expose crimes, bear witness to crimes, name perpetrators, influence public opinion and apply pressure on legal and political institutions to respond to human rights abuses. However, victims and activists also recognise the media is limited in delivering justice. Therefore, this article argues a trial by media should be conceived of more as an accountability mechanism that has the capacity to draw attention to the shortcomings of official legal responses and processes.

The role of the media as a parallel tool of justice for crimes against a civilian population

“…Besides, mass media usually assess a small fragment of the conflict, sometimes only one incident, a particular crime committed during a military campaign (Bachmann et al, 2019). Therefore, it is proposed to carry out a careful assessment of the use of the mass media as a parallel forum of justice, as it is appropriate to reduce the role of the mass media to the establishment of an accountability mechanism that can draw attention to the shortcomings of official institutions, measures and processes (Rae, 2020).…”

“…40 Nº 74 (2022): 293-308 human rights violations and reparation of damages to victims. The media can also influence law enforcement agencies to make them respond to criminal activity (Rae, 2020).…”

“…The media intend to create a context in which conflicts and related crimes are discussed (Orjuela, 2020). In general, "media justice" as a parallel approach can be considered as an indicator that the legal system does not meet the needs and expectations of victims (Rae, 2020).…”

Relational legal consciousness and anticorruption: Lava Jato, social media interactions, and the co-production of law's detraction in Brazil (2017–2019)

“…Many of these studies highlight the role of social forces like gender, race, and class in shaping how subjects experience and make sense of law and legal recourse while facing harassment and discrimination, building bridges with critical race theory and legal feminism. A few chart instances where movements and minorities use informal venues outside courts to seek justice (Rae, 2019), including the internet (Gash & Harding, 2018).…”

“…Many of these studies highlight the role of social forces like gender, race, and class in shaping how subjects experience and make sense of law and legal recourse while facing harassment and discrimination, building bridges with critical race theory and legal feminism. A few chart instances where movements and minorities use informal venues outside courts to seek justice (Rae, 2019), including the internet (Gash & Harding, 2018). Silbey (2005) criticized legal consciousness scholars for (1) tracking variations in people's thoughts and attitudes while ignoring their underlying material conditions and (2) abandoning the ambition to use these thoughts and attitudes as windows to theorize about how law's hegemony is sustained.…”