Exploring Truth Commission Recommendations in Latin America: Beyond Words Vol. I and Vol. I - Book launch by Professor Elin Skaar
Book Launch:
The Irish Centre for Human Rights is delighted to welcome Professor Elin Skaar presenting Beyond Words (Vol I and II), two outstanding volumes focussing on Latin American truth commissions and their recommendations, co-written with Eric Wiebelhaus-Brahm (UA Little Rock) and Jemima García-Godos (University of Oslo).
‘Truth commission recommendations are critical to their legacies, yet there is little research examining their fates. Based on fieldwork that is unprecedented in scope, this two-volume project provides the first systematic study of the formulation and implementation of the recommendations of 13 Latin American truth commissions.
The first Beyond Words volume examines the variations in truth commission recommendations across 13 truth commissions in 11 Latin American countries: Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Guatemala, Haiti, Peru, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, and Uruguay. Insights are provided regarding how the internal dynamics of truth commissions, as well as the political, social and economic context in which they operate, influence how recommendations are formulated. The authors then explore what factors influence the implementation of these recommendations across time and across political contexts. The authors also reflect upon how their findings can be of relevance for the crafting of future truth commission recommendations, and hence shape the impact of truth commissions on societies emerging from periods of violence and repression.
The second Beyond Words volume is a unique collection of 11 Latin American in-depth country studies covering all 13 formal truth commissions established in this region that submitted their final reports between 1984 and 2014. Based on qualitative original data and a common analytical framework, the main focus of each of the country chapters is threefold: (1) to provide a brief background to the truth commission(s); (2) to provide a detailed account of the formulation of the truth commission’s recommendations; and (3) to analyse the implementation record of the recommendations, taking into account the actors and factors that have aided – or obstructed – the implementation process.’
