3.19. Unfinished Transitional Justices: Memory Regimes, Truth Commissions, and Their Discontents in Comparative Perspective

What are the repercussions of a past that has not been fully processed? Why is it relevant to reflect on the memory of seemingly distant acts of violence? Enforced disappearance revolves around a claim of non-existence, evidenced by the intention to leave no trace of the crime and the desire to erase the victim's identity. In Colombia, the crime has been committed across the board during the conflict in different contexts, which has prevented its recognition. The period between 1978 and 1990 is unique in that, under the doctrine of the internal enemy, the state was the main perpetrator and the practice, which was unknown at the time, was established systematically. The various initiatives that emerged, both at the time and subsequently, clarified the objectives behind the implementation of the crime, as well as its impacts. One of the findings was the direct impact on the close circles of the disappeared, who were left in limbo due to the uncertainty about the fate of the victim, which prevented them from grieving and even affected subsequent generations. This text will analyze how the Truth Commission Report addresses the forced disappearances of this period from a perspective that includes the past in which they were perpetrated and the present in which they resonate, but which also challenges us.

Argentina’ social movements and its experience of transitional justice have made significant impacts on the idea and practice of transitional justice at worldwide scale. Today, according to the UN(A/HRC/45/45), in addition to truth, justice, reparation, guarantees of non-recurrence, memorialization process is considered one of five pillars of transitional justice. It is a vital tool for combating injustice, promoting peace, and enhancing quality of democracy. Over the years how have Latin American countries such as Argentina and Chile dealt with memory of the past? Who are the main driving forces of memory policies? What are the progress and setbacks? Has the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights (IACHR) played a large role in the process of implementing memory policies in the region? In what ways do Latin American experiences help UN supporting memorialization processes of transitional justice around the world? This paper will have three parts. First, reviewing scholarly works on memory politics in Latin America, this paper will examine Argentina’s experience of memory building/preserving situations over the years. It will focus on evolution of memory policies, main actors, and politics during the Kirchner and Fernández administrations. It will also consider evolution of memory policies in recent years. Second, examining IACHR’s public documents, this paper will assess IACHR’s involvement of memory policies and its promotion of human rights and democratic values in the region. Finally, this will examine UN involvement in memorialization/memory processes as one of transitional justice approaches. Through reviewing UN documents over the two decades, this paper will trace evolution and variation of transitional justice approaches. In conclusion, while acknowledging some progress of memory policies in transitional justice approaches, this paper will point out some challenges as memory would be a battlefield (A/HRC/45/45).

In this paper, I intend to present the results of my research conducted last academic year in Montevideo, which is related to my doctoral dissertation on the politics of memory concerning the last dictatorship in Uruguay (1973-1985). My presentation will be divided into three parts. First, I will briefly introduce the issue of state memory policy in Uruguay and discuss the research tools I used. Next, I will present a broad analysis of the issue of memory policy in Uruguay from several perspectives: researchers working on this issue; representatives of organizations and institutions promoting human rights and supporting victims of the dictatorship and their families (Madres y Familiares de Uruguayos Detenidos Desaparecidos, Servicio Paz y Justicia Uruguay, Asociación de ex-pres@s polític@s de Uruguay, Sitios de Memoria Uruguay, Museo de la Memoria, Institución Nacional de Derechos Humanos y Defensoría del Pueblo del Uruguay, Hijos e Hijas por la Identidad y la Justicia contra el Olvido y el Silencio Uruguay) and key political actors. The analysis will be based on semi-structured expert interviews conducted by me. Finally, I will discuss the current challenges related to the politics of memory. The presented paper will answer the research question concerning the interpretation and understanding of the politics of memory by my interviewees. The research conducted revealed similarities and differences in the interpretation and understanding of the politics of memory among selected researchers, representatives of organizations, representatives of institutions, and politicians. Most respondents pointed to the challenge posed by the pacto del silencio or the position of the military.

This paper analyzes the phenomenon of comissionism in Brasil, understood as the proliferation of truth commissions across different spheres and institutions following the creation of the National Truth Commission. Based on the mapping of 129 commissions established between 2011 and 2025, the study examines how these initiatives reveal the decentralized, fragmented, and socially driven nature of memory policies in the country. More than a compilation of data, the survey systematizes scattered information and updates the understanding of the scope and impact of comissionism, significantly surpassing the figures previously presented by other authors. The results show that the peak of these initiatives occurred between 2012 and 2014, in a context of valorization of human rights, followed by a period of retraction between 2016 and 2022, marked by revisionism and institutional dismantling. The renewed momentum observed since 2023 highlights the sensitivity of memory policies to the conditions of democratic openness. Although the commissions did not always succeed in fully elucidating the cases they investigated, they were crucial in bringing visibility to the violations of the dictatorship, the importance of democracy, and the centrality of human rights. More than a historical assessment, the paper proposes a research and action agenda aimed at consolidating a national database of truth commissions and strengthening public memory policies. By reaffirming truth as the only available instrument of justice in the face of the constraints imposed by the Amnesty Law, comissionism emerges as a mirror of democracy’s ongoing struggle against oblivion.

RESEARCH QUESTION How is possible to recapitulate and put into perspective the experiences of transitional justice in Mexico? METHODOLOGY In first place, is necessary to address the work of the Special Prosecutor's Office for Social and Political Movements of the Past (2006), instituted by the government of the alternation of Vicente Fox, whose vicissitudes and results were marked by a debt with the victims of the violence of the recent past, since, despite having punitive capacity and considerable material resources, it did not achieve greater results. Secondly, in contrast to the special prosecutor's office already mentioned, is mandatory to refer and praise the courageous work of the Truth Commission of the State of Guerrero (2014), which, despite its limited funds, threats received and even attacks to the commissioners, managed to demonstrate the depth and persistence of the damage caused in the state due to the so-called Dirty War waged by the Mexican government at that time. Finally, we need to complement the above references with the (new) commission created by López Obrador's government (2021) to clarify and judge the repressive recent past of the country. This commission carried out its work in the midst of obstacles, setbacks and controversies of various kinds. About a year ago (August and October of 2024, respectively) two important conclusion reports were published. KEY WORDS Mexico, Recent History, Transitional Justice, Human Rights. KEY FINDINGS Despite the fact transitional justice in Mexico has been more an elusive aspiration than an accomplished reality, the three experiences mentioned lines ahead show that, in Mexican society, there is a struggle related with the past, which is, eventually, a different way to cope with the dilemmas or the overwhelming present.