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80524-01 - Seminar: The Politics of Transitional Justice (3 CP)
| Semester | fall semester 2026 |
| Course frequency | Once only |
| Lecturers | Julie Bernath (julie.bernath@unibas.ch, Assessor) |
| Content | Transitional justice refers to a broad set of judicial and non-judicial policies and processes aimed at addressing legacies of political violence and systematic human rights violations. It is widely regarded as a cornerstone of sustainable peace, democracy, and the rule of law. This seminar introduces students to the key debates, normative foundations, historical developments and landmark cases that have shaped transitional justice as an interdisciplinary field of policy, practice and scholarly inquiry. Particular attention is given to the political dynamics that underpin transitional justice processes at the micro, meso, and macro level. Who is recognized as a victim, perpetrator, or transitional justice expert? What counts as a legitimate claim for justice? Which narratives of the past and forms of knowledge are validated, and which experiences of violence remain marginalized or silenced? Whose political interests does this serve, and how does this shape domestic, regional or international politics? Throughout the seminar, students will examine a range of transitional justice mechanisms, including criminal prosecutions, truth commissions, reparations, and institutional reforms, while critically engaging with theoretical debates and empirical research on the promises and limitations of transitional justice in contemporary world politics. |
| Learning objectives | The main learning objective of this seminar is to provide students with a solid understanding of the key theoretical, normative and empirical debates in transitional justice scholarship. Students will learn about the conceptual and historical underpinnings of transitional justice as a field of practice, policy and research. They will gain rich empirical insights on the politics of transitional justice from practical case studies across diverse historical and contemporary contexts. Students will be challenged to engage in critical analysis of the prospects and limitations of dealing with the past, to engage with competing methodological approaches and to reflect on the politics of knowledge production in the field. Students will sharpen their capacity for critical analysis of interdisciplinary academic literature and develop their oral presentation and communication skills. |
| Bibliography | Selected course readings: Arthur, Paige (2009) “How ‘Transitions’ Reshaped Human Rights: A Conceptual History of Transitional Justice,” Human Rights Quarterly 31 (2): 321–367. Buckley-Zistel, Susanne, Teresa Koloma Beck, Christian Braun, and Friederike Mieth, eds. (2014). Transitional Justice Theories. Abingdon, Oxon: Routledge. Sharp, Dustin (2019) Rethinking Transitional Justice for the Twenty-First Century: Beyond the End of History, New York: Cambridge University Press. Gready, Paul and Simon Robins (eds. 2019) From Transitional to Transformative Justice. New York: Cambridge University Press. Destrooper Tine and Elke Evrard (eds. 2026) The Cambridge Handbook of Victim Engagement in Transitional Justice. Cambridge University Press. Ba, Oumar (2020) States of Justice: The Politics of the International Criminal Court, New York: Cambridge University Press. McAuliffe, Padraig (2025) “Interesting Times. Transitional justice in the Era of Putin, Xi and Trump 2.0”, Global Constitutionalism, 1-27 Jones, Briony and Ulrike Lühe (eds. 2021) Knowledge for Peace. Transitional Justice and the Politics of Knowledge in Theory and Practice, Edward Elgar Publishing. Lefranc, Sandrine; Vairel, Frederic (2013): The Emergence of Transitional Justice as a Professional International Practice. In Liora Israël, Guillaume Mouralis (Eds.): Dealing with Wars and Dictatorships: Legal Concepts and Categories in Action: T.M.C. Asser Press, pp. 235–252. Grewall, Kiran (2023) “The Epistemic Violence of Transitional Justice: A View from Sri Lanka”, International Journal of Transitional Justice 17 (2): 322–338. |
| Comments | Number of places is limited to 35 students. In case of overbooking, priority will be given to students of the Master's Program in European Global Studies. |
| Weblink | Europainstitut Basel |
| Language of instruction | English |
| Use of digital media | No specific media used |
| Interval | Weekday | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|---|
| wöchentlich | Tuesday | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
Dates
| Date | Time | Room |
|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 15.09.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 22.09.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 29.09.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 06.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 13.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 20.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 27.10.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 03.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 10.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 17.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 24.11.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 01.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 08.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Tuesday 15.12.2026 | 10.15-12.00 | Riehenstrasse 154, Hörsaal 00.015 |
| Modules |
Modul: Transfer: Europa interdisziplinär (Master's degree program: European History in Global Perspective) Module: Extension Social Sciences (Master's degree subject: Political Science – Inequality, Power, Conflict) Module: Fields: Governance and Politics (Master's degree program: African Studies) Specialization Module Global Europe: Peace and Conflict Studies (Master's Studies: European Global Studies) Wahlbereich Master Geschichte: Empfehlungen (Master's degree subject: History) |
| Assessment format | continuous assessment |
| Assessment registration/deregistration | Reg.: course registration; dereg.: not required |
| Repeat examination | no repeat examination |
| Scale | 1-6 0,5 |
| Repeated registration | no repetition |
| Responsible faculty | University of Basel |
| Offered by | Europainstitut |