International Conference Normandy Chair for Peace Justice, Truth and Resilience

Crédit Agricole Conference Center Caen, France

This conference, supported by the MRSH, is organized within the framework of the Normandy for Peace program initiated by the Normandy Region, with the support of the Demolombe Institute, Caen la Mer and the University of Caen, and in partnership with the Varenne University Institute.

The quest for justice is often transgenerational, driven by a dynamic of truth to lift the shadows left by wars, dictatorships and all other forms of violence and injustice. In line with the Kantian concept of universal peace, the concept of sustainable peace inclines us to think of peace as a process, something that is built, nourished, protected, transmitted but also claimed.

How to institute sustainable peace and accompany resilience after apartheid, dictatorships, genocides or ecocides? How to ensure the transition to democracy while confronting and transmitting the memory of atrocities committed on a population? How to claim justice where the state justice does not act? What shifts in line from the duty to remember to the duty to act are currently at work?

Two days will be dedicated to different resilience dynamics.

In 1982, the first Truth Commission was created in Bolivia, then spread throughout the world: Argentina, Zimbabwe, Philippines, Chile, Nepal…. In 1995, under the presidency of Nelson Mandela, the first Truth and Reconciliation Commission with public hearings was created to identify human rights violations under the apartheid regime. Setting a precedent for what is now commonly referred to as a “transitional justice” model, this type of commission has since been used regularly as an aid to the democratic transition process.

On Friday, November 23, the experiences of Tunisia, Canada, Togo and Latin America will be studied… The multiple faces of transitional justice will be traced, analyzed and criticized. The day will conclude with the Commission currently being developed in Colombia, which will have to study the issue of ecological damage.

Saturday, November 24 is a day more focused on the role of civil society. The day will begin with the testimony of Magda Hollander Lafont, a survivor of the Birkenau camps who is particularly committed to the memory of the Shoah while carrying a message of hope and resilience for our younger generations. The movement known as “Grandmothers of the Plaza de Mayo” will be presented, in the presence of a grandson who was found. The NGO Peace Boat will present the work of liberalizing speech on topics such as the explosion of atomic bombs by inviting Hibakushas (survivors of Hiroshima and Nagasaki).The quest for lasting peace also tends to be presented under the atypical features of courts of opinion. The experience of the International Monsanto Tribunal will be particularly highlighted in the presence of judges, lawyers, members of the organizing committee and witnesses. This is how a real shift is taking place from the transmission of memory to the demand for lasting peace. The French NGO Sherpa, which aims to make French multinationals accountable by denouncing violations of human rights and ethical commitments, mainly abroad, will also be present.

In the era of globalization, a shift from the duty of remembrance to the duty of vigilance and citizen action in the service of lasting peace is emerging.

This international colloquium will focus on the following themes

  • Justice transitionnelle, paix et résilience
  • Les citoyens au service de la résilience et de la paix durable

Scientific Director: Emilie Gaillard, co-director of the MSM Risk Unit, professor-researcher in private law, SciencesPo Rennes

Scientific Committee

  • Jonas BOCHET, Directeur de l’Institut international des droits de l’Homme et de la paix
  • François COLLART-DUTILLEUL, Professeur émérite de droit, membre honoraire de l’Institut Universitaire de France
  • Marie ROTA, Maître de conférences en droit public, Université de Lorraine, Université de Caen Normandie
  • Nadia TAHIR, Maître de conférences, ERLIS, Université de Caen Normandie

Reread: Colloquium Acting in Justice on Behalf of Future Generations: A Growing Reality as a Vehicle for PeaceColloque Agir en Justice au Nom des Générations Futures : Une réalité grandissante vecteur de paix.

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