Back to RJ Archive

On the indivisibility of rights: Truth commissions, reparations, and the right to development.

Laplante, Lisa J.
June 4, 2015

Source: (2007) Yale Human Rights & Development Law Journal. 10(1): 141-177.

While academics debate the ranking of rights, information from the field demonstrates their indivisibility. This Article explores how truth commissions provide rich documentation of the interrelation between violations of Civil and Political Rights (CPR) and Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ESCR), using Peru’s Truth and Reconciliation Com-mission (TRC) as an example. The TRC’s findings show how social and economic inequalities contributed to the eruption of political violence, which further exacerbated these conditions. This revelation challenged the TRC to develop a reparation plan that adequately responded to the needs of victim-survivors, while maintaining a causal link with damage caused by the conflict. Ultimately, the TRC focused narrowly on repairing damage caused by CPR violations. Yet now, almost four years later, the government confuses development with traditional reparation measures, generating criticism. The author proposes that Peru’s post-conflict recovery may need to accept the overlap between reparations and development to improve the “well being” of its intended beneficiaries. (Author’s abstract)

Tags:

Abstract
Support the cause

We've Been Restoring Justice for More Than 40 Years

Your donation helps Prison Fellowship International repair the harm caused by crime by emphasizing accountability, forgiveness, and making amends for prisoners and those affected by their actions. When victims, offenders, and community members meet to decide how to do that, the results are transformational.

Donate Now