BY GEORGE MANFORD
AUKI
INTERNATIONAL consultant engaged by UNDP for the reparation framework consultation Mr Patrick Burgees yesterday informed workshop participants about transitional justice (TJ) and reparation in Auki.
According to the United Nations Mr Burgees said transitional justice is an approach that includes all of the steps taken by a society to address a history of mass human rights violations.
This includes the four pillars of a transition justice framework, prosecution of those most responsible, seeking the truth about what had happen, providing reparations to victims and reforming institutions and society in order to guarantee that the violations do not recur.
The Solomon Islands has made considerable progress towards peace and healing after the damage caused by the tension.
This has led to a stable and secure environment that is essential for development.
Burgees added, achievements in terms of the four pillars of the transition justice framework include prosecution, truth, reform and preventing recurrence and reparation.
The primary duty of a government is to protect its citizens from harm.
When mass human rights violation are committed the state has fail in its duty to protect.
He also stated it therefore has an obligation to try to repair the lives of the victims.
This is always a very difficult task that resources to assist are in most cases very limited.
The number of victims are hundreds, thousands, and sometimes in the millions and it is important that limited resources available are used to help the victims of the most serious violations and those victims who are most vulnerable, the sick, disable, poor and mentally disturbed.
In many counties the relatively small amount of funds available for reparation have been largely wasted because the mechanisms established are not effective or are open to corruption, nepotism and political influence. Great care has to be taken in establishing a reparation programme to ensure that the help gets most deserving and needy victims.
