Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process
This article examines The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), assessing its achievements, challenges, and impact on transitional justice. Established in 2018 to investigate human rights abuses under Yahya Jammeh’s regime, the TRRC documented testimonies of torture, enfo...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Queensland University of Technology
2025-06-01
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| Series: | International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy |
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| Online Access: | https://www.crimejusticejournal.com/article/view/3920 |
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| author | Aminata Ndow |
| author_facet | Aminata Ndow |
| author_sort | Aminata Ndow |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | This article examines The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), assessing its achievements, challenges, and impact on transitional justice. Established in 2018 to investigate human rights abuses under Yahya Jammeh’s regime, the TRRC documented testimonies of torture, enforced disappearances, and systemic violence, creating a historical record and recommending reparative measures. However, its lack of prosecutorial power, political resistance, and structural limitations raise concerns about justice and accountability. Based on ethnographic research at the Women’s Association for Victims’ Empowerment (WAVE), this study explores how families of the disappeared navigate mourning and memory in the absence of closure. Drawing on Derrida, Ricœur, Foucault, and Arendt, it analyzes truth, power, and collective memory in shaping post-TRRC reconciliation efforts. While the TRRC provided a crucial platform for truth-telling, its legacy depends on sustained civil society advocacy and structural reform. This article argues that effective transitional justice requires grassroots activism, victim-centered approaches, and community-led initiatives beyond formal commissions. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-8b7f831bafa446ea8505c294cc40f91e |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2202-7998 2202-8005 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
| publisher | Queensland University of Technology |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy |
| spelling | doaj-art-8b7f831bafa446ea8505c294cc40f91e2025-08-20T02:04:20ZengQueensland University of TechnologyInternational Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy2202-79982202-80052025-06-0114211210.5204/ijcjsd.39204243Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice ProcessAminata Ndow0https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4870-6833Harvard UniversityThis article examines The Gambia’s Truth, Reconciliation and Reparations Commission (TRRC), assessing its achievements, challenges, and impact on transitional justice. Established in 2018 to investigate human rights abuses under Yahya Jammeh’s regime, the TRRC documented testimonies of torture, enforced disappearances, and systemic violence, creating a historical record and recommending reparative measures. However, its lack of prosecutorial power, political resistance, and structural limitations raise concerns about justice and accountability. Based on ethnographic research at the Women’s Association for Victims’ Empowerment (WAVE), this study explores how families of the disappeared navigate mourning and memory in the absence of closure. Drawing on Derrida, Ricœur, Foucault, and Arendt, it analyzes truth, power, and collective memory in shaping post-TRRC reconciliation efforts. While the TRRC provided a crucial platform for truth-telling, its legacy depends on sustained civil society advocacy and structural reform. This article argues that effective transitional justice requires grassroots activism, victim-centered approaches, and community-led initiatives beyond formal commissions.https://www.crimejusticejournal.com/article/view/3920transitional justicehuman rights violationsgambiatrrcgrass roots activism |
| spellingShingle | Aminata Ndow Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process International Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy transitional justice human rights violations gambia trrc grass roots activism |
| title | Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process |
| title_full | Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process |
| title_fullStr | Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process |
| title_full_unstemmed | Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process |
| title_short | Building Voice Upon Voice: Truth, Memory, and Activism in The Gambia’s Transitional Justice Process |
| title_sort | building voice upon voice truth memory and activism in the gambia s transitional justice process |
| topic | transitional justice human rights violations gambia trrc grass roots activism |
| url | https://www.crimejusticejournal.com/article/view/3920 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT aminatandow buildingvoiceuponvoicetruthmemoryandactivisminthegambiastransitionaljusticeprocess |