Mainstreaming Popular Participation in Transitional Justice: Lessons from Multilateral, State and Civil Society Actors in The Gambia and Somalia
- Posted on
- In Policy, Publications, Research
- by Jasmina Brankovic and Simon Robins
Statements on the need for popular participation are increasingly common in international and national transitional justice policy and literature, yet little guidance is available on how to put participation into practice. Based on empirical research in The Gambia and Somalia and with multilateral actors supporting transitional justice in Africa, this research report examines what participation looks like and provides actionable recommendations for enabling participation in a more meaningful way. The findings are relevant for transitional justice policy makers, practitioners and scholars on the continent and beyond.
The study builds on the African Union Transitional Justice Policy's provisions for community participation and acknowledgement of both formal, state-run measures and non-formal, civil society-led measures as transitional justice. The findings show that meaningful participation requires four main commitments on the part of multilateral, state and civil society actors: 1) mainstreaming, 2) localisation, 3) decentralisation, and 4) recognition of non-formal measures. Participatory transitional justice results in more inclusive, contextualised and effective processes, with broad-based buy-in for sustainable outcomes.
For more information and publications on mainstreaming popular participation in transitional justice, click here.
Mainstreaming Popular Participation in Transitional Justice - Brankovic and Robins 2025
Dr. Jasmina Brankovic is the Senior Research Specialist at the Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation. With a focus on participatory methods, Jasmina conducts research on inequality and socioeconomic transformation, climate justice, narrative change, and civil society strategies in transitional contexts. Her publications include 'Violence, Inequality and Transformation: Apartheid Survivors on South Africa's Ongoing Transition' (2020), 'The Global Climate Regime and Transitional Justice' (2018) and 'Advocating Transitional Justice in Africa: The Role of Civil Society' (2018). She has a PhD in Political Science from the University of Marburg (Centre for Conflict Studies).
Simon Robins
Dr. Simon Robins is a Research Advisor to the Red Cross Red Crescent Missing Persons Centre, hosted by the International Committee of the Red Cross, and a Senior Research Fellow at the Centre for Applied Human Rights at the University of York.
