Source: (2010) In, Sharanjeet Parmar, et. al, eds., Children and transitional justice: Truth-telling, accountability and reconciliation. United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and the Human Rights Program at Harvard Law School. pp. 159-191.
Children’s involvement in truth commissions and in transitional
justice mechanisms is recent, and the experience in Sierra Leone
was foundational in that respect. The Sierra Leone Truth and
Reconciliation Commission (TRC) was the first truth commission
to involve children in statement-taking and in closed and thematic
hearings, as well as in the preparation of a child-friendly version of
the Commission report. The role of children in the Sierra Leone
TRC was also groundbreaking in setting precedent and developing
policies and procedures to protect the rights of children in truth
commission processes. This has had a significant impact on the
emerging understanding of children’s evolving capacities to
contribute to the legal and social aspects of TRC activities. (excerpt)
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