Navigating local transitional justice : agency at work in post-conflict Sierra Leone / Laura S. Martin, University of Nottingham.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Martin, Laura, S., author.

Series:

African studies series ; 163.

African studies series ; 163

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Human rights--Sierra Leone.

Human rights.

Transitional justice--Sierra Leone.

Transitional justice.

Conflict management--Sierra Leone.

Conflict management.

Sierra Leone--Politics and government--1961-.

Sierra Leone.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (x, 195 pages) : digital, PDF file(s).

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, United Kingdom ; New York, NY, USA : Cambridge University Press, 2023.

Summary:

In post-war Sierra Leone, a range of transitional justice mechanisms were implemented to address experiences of conflict, violence, and human rights violations. Much of the research on local transitional justice processes has focused on the work of organisations, failing to acknowledge how individual and communal dynamics shape and are shaped by these programs. Drawing on original fieldwork in Sierra Leone, Laura S. Martin moves beyond discussions measuring effectiveness and considers how people navigate their circumstances in conflict and post-conflict societies. Developing the idea of recognised and unrecognised transitional justice processes, Martin uses Fambul Tok as an example of a recognised local transitional justice program and shows how ordinary Sierra Leoneans appropriated Fambul Tok's agenda for their own purposes. Ultimately, this book highlights the crucial role of agency and the diverse range of actors involved in transitional justice processes. Justice, as Martin powerfully argues, is not something that happens to or for people, but is enacted by individuals and communities.

Contents:

Cover

Half-title page

Series page

Title page

Copyright page

Dedication

Contents

List of Maps

Acknowledgments

1 Agency in Times of Transitional Justice: Recognized and Unrecognized Mechanisms "at Work"

Transitional Justice: A Brief Review

Great Expectations? Localizing Transitional Justice

Conceptualizing the Local, Agency and the Everyday

Sierra Leone's Civil Conflict

Experimenting with Transitional Justice: A (Sierra Leonean) Laboratory

Fambul Tok: A Case Study

A Note on Research Methods

Book Outline

2 Navigating Violence, Peace and Justice: Conflict and Post-Conflict Experiences in Sierra Leone

The War in Sierra Leone (1991-2002)

Historical Antecedents and Causes of the Conflict

The Sierra Leone Civil War: A Chronological Overview and Narratives of Violence

Bombali District5 and Its "Role" in the Conflict

Navigating Conflict: Individual and Communal Experiences in Rural Bombali

The "Post-Conflict" Era and Transitional Justice Programs in Sierra Leone

Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR) and Ex-combatants

The Special Court of Sierra Leone (SCSL)

The Truth and Reconciliation Commission

Reparations

Conclusion

3 Deconstructing Fambul Tok's Discourse and Practice: The Local, Ownership and Participation

Fambul Tok Origins: Intersections between Local, National and International

Projections and Representations of the Local: Logics and Pitfalls

Ownership and Participation: The Captain Savage Story

Delineating Fambul Tok's "Local" in Practice: How (Local) Agents Actually Work

4 Participant Experiences with Fambul Tok's Program: Interpretation, Appropriation and Agency

Lenses of Interpretation

Religion

Prior NGO Engagement and the Fambul Tok Approach

National and Local Politics.

Case Study: Makulon and Gbintimaria

Background

Fambul Tok and the Chieftaincy Conflict

The Bonfire Ceremony

Preparation

Ceremony

Confessions and Forgiveness

Peace and Unity Produce Development: Fambul Tok's Legacies

Peace Mothers

Dispute Resolution

Interpretation of Communal Development(s)

5 Unrecognized Mechanisms, Normality and Everyday Realities in Transition

Transition(s): Official Discourses and Everyday Realities

On the Subject of Normality and Unrecognized Mechanisms

Unrecognized Mechanisms and the "New Normal"

Economic Restoration

Agricultural Engagement

Normality in Everyday Life: Implications for Transitions and Justice from Sierra Leone

6 Activating Justice

Fambul Tok: Representations, Realities and Transformations

Transitions "at Work" and Activating Justice

Appendix A: Informant Interview List

References

Index.

Notes:

Title from publisher's bibliographic system (viewed on 13 Jul 2023).

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

1-009-28103-8

1-009-28102-X

1-009-28105-4