The National Solidarity, Brotherhood and Democracy Commission, established in parliament within the scope of the Peace and Democratic Society Process, has extended its mandate by two months. During this period, the commission is expected to prepare a joint report. While political parties differ over the content of the report, there is broad emphasis on the vital importance of legal regulations for the advancement of the process.

 

Since the beginning of the process, Kurdish People’s Leader Abdullah Öcalan has consistently drawn attention to the importance of legal arrangements. In a meeting held in November, Öcalan stressed: “For this process to move into a positive phase, it is of vital importance that everyone acts with sensitivity, seriousness and a sense of responsibility.” Members of the DEM Party İmralı Delegation have also made statements and calls in this direction.

 

Experiences from conflict resolution processes around the world underline the significance of the legal regulations highlighted by Abdullah Öcalan for achieving a lasting solution and peace.

 

So how has peace and resolution been achieved, or is being achieved, in regions marked by armed conflict? This question does not have a single answer, as each country’s transition process differs. In some cases, processes began with confronting the past, while in others both reckoning with the past and legal reforms were pursued simultaneously.

 

In many parts of the world, these processes are described as “transitional justice.” The development of transitional justice dates back to the period following World War II. The Nuremberg Trials in Germany, where commanders responsible for atrocities committed during the Nazi era were prosecuted, are considered the first implementation of transitional justice mechanisms.

 

AIMS

 

The establishment of transitional justice raises expectations for peace processes. According to the United Nations (UN), transitional justice refers to “the full range of processes and mechanisms associated with a society’s attempts to come to terms with a legacy of large-scale past abuses,” with the aim of holding perpetrators accountable, serving justice and achieving reconciliation.

 

Transitional justice seeks to:

 

*Reveal grave violations committed in the past,

 

*Recognize victims and provide reparations for their harm,

 

*Build social peace,

 

*Restructure state institutions through reform,

 

*Prevent the recurrence of similar violations in the future.

 

MECHANISMS

 

The process known as transitional justice also includes the drafting of transitional laws. In peace processes carried out in different regions of the world, special transitional laws have been enacted to enable disarmament and eliminate the causes of conflict. These laws do not follow a single model; each country develops solutions tailored to its own historical and social conditions.

 

Some common mechanisms can be identified:

 

Truth commissions: Established to uncover past violations, make victims’ testimonies visible and create a collective memory.

 

Criminal prosecutions: Emphasize states’ obligation to prosecute serious violations such as crimes against humanity and war crimes.

 

Reparations and redress mechanisms: Including material compensation, symbolic reparations, public apologies and memorialization policies.

 

Institutional reforms: The transformation of the judiciary, security forces and public institutions is seen as essential for ensuring the permanence of the transition process.

 

The regulations to be introduced or the laws to be enacted are expected to fall within the framework of international human rights law, international humanitarian law and international criminal law. Transitional laws encompass processes such as establishing the legal basis for disarmament and demobilization, integration, confronting past violations, and social and institutional reform.

 

Transitional laws also facilitate the disarmament of armed groups involved in the conflict and the dissolution of their organizational structures. In some contexts, this process includes legal and technical mechanisms to ensure the safe custody of weapons stockpiles. The demobilization process focuses on preparing combatants for a transition to civilian life.

 

PEACE AND JUSTICE 

 

According to constitutional law professor Mithat Sancar, who is also a member of the İmralı Delegation, peace processes cannot be limited solely to ending armed conflict. Sancar emphasizes that it is not possible to build a lasting and just peace in societies that fail to confront grave human rights violations committed in the past.

 

In his work The Rule of Law under the Grip of State Reasoning, Sancar examines transitional justice through the question of “how extraordinary periods can be connected to ordinary law.” He argues that peace models excluding accountability may produce short-term stability but ultimately fuel new dynamics of conflict in the long run.

 

All international experiences in conflict resolution demonstrate that peace and justice cannot be separated. They show that this process is not only about confronting the past, but also about rebuilding the future.

 

Tomorrow: How ‘white’ racism defeated in South Africa?

 

MA / Berivan Altan