Parallel event: The Right to the truth and transitional justice.

This events was organized by the delegations of Argentina and Switzerland. Switzerland wants to propose a resolution concerning the process of justice in transitional periods. The resolution should be transregional in order to strenghten the high Commissioner of Humand Rights.

Mr. Federico Villegas took the floor (Director of Human Rights, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International TRade and Worship of Republic of Argentina).
Experience of Argentina with movments like "las Madres de Mayo" and "las abuelas" ask for change in accusation of officials and safety for impunity. It is becoming considered as a common right to know the truth on our past. It is therefore a right of the whole society and a right that contributes to the right to justice. Argentina is a kind of laboratory experience and is the country that has paid the biggest amount of money in the world for the cause of forced desappearances.

Mrs. Mona Rishmawi made a comment on the report (Legal Advisor, Office of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights).
This is the 2nd report. The first was about situating this right in the international law.
The second report is based on the information that they received from the states and NGOs after a verbal note they sent to them. A lot of states answered, goob basis. It is structured around 3 sections: the nature and content of the right to truth, its link with other riths, and the mechanisms: 1) It is a societal but autonomous right (exists by itself) and 2) it is linked with the right to investigate, the justice and the right to reparation. 3) the legal proceedings and the codes build the mechanisms process.
It is a right that is concerned about how societies emerging from a conflict deal with the past and the present. There are many components: prosectution, truth seeking, institution reform...
The OHCHR provides assistance on transitional justice and this experience brings policy tools. It faces challenges like amnesties. The Council has now to decide if it wants this resolution to go further.

Mr. Federico Andreu took then the floor (Legal Expert, International Commission of Juirists).
He explained a little bit more the historical origins of this right:
- Conference of Berlin and Paris on desappeared persons, end of 19 century. First idea of right to truth.
- Geneva Convention, Protocole 1, Art. 32: right to know
- Jurisprudence, since 1977 imposes not only during war time but also peace time.
- Since the 1990s, legislative process, traduction into norms.
- Convention on the protection of all desappeared persons (1st treaty of the UN): Art 24
- Practice: trial de la Platta, Peru, Bosnia-Herzegovina...
- New developments: resolution on the right to truth
This right is linked to other rights: reparation, identity (for the children mainly)... but also to obligations: inquiry, trial, fight impunity... It is a new right.

Mr. Leandro Despouy finally tok the floor (Special Rapporteur on the independence of judges and lawyers).
There has been a big evolution during the last 50 years. It is a transformation of the judicial system that no one would have expected. It is characteristic of our times because it shows the changing nature of the relationship between individuals, and between individuals and states. It is a tool for the resolution of other rights. For example, there is an important relationship of reciprocity between this right and the right to justice. It has an important ethic and moral dimension because it concerns the dignity of the victims.
The lgitimity of this rights belong to the families and close persons and the whole society of the crime is grave (genocide).
It is therfore a cultural transformation. We passed from forgetting the past to the right of memory, necessary today to build democracy and solid institutions.

Main general comments:

- Maroc: also got his own experience and created the instence of equity and reconcilitation (IER). It examines the last 43 years (from the independence in 56 to 99, date of the creation of the instence on independent arbitrage) and makes propositions of reforms. It establishes the truth through investigation, public audiances... The recommandations target the rehabilitation (psycho, medical, professional...) and the community reparations (social, eco, cultural development programs). The goal is the restaure the faith int the institutions. (www.iec.ma)

- Spain: also adopted a law for reparation to the victims of Franco regime.

- France: noted that the process of reparation was often used as a way to turn away from a judicial process. How is it possible to show that this is not the right attitude?
Answer from Mrs. Mona Rishmawi: When UN directly involved there are guidelines or bottom lines: no amnesty. And then the other line is not to close the door for further mechanisms. She would like to see the national consultations as an important aspect. There are bars rather than sequences.
Answer from Mr. Villegas: he sees sequences in this case. It is the creation of a new Jus Cogens. UN can play important role, in exchange of best practices especially.

EAD