The Political Geographies of Transitional Justice Perspectives in the Context of Syria

Despite stalled peace negotiations and the absence of a political transition in the context of Syria, various actors have mobilized the discourses of transitional justice and launched transitional justice initiatives at multiple levels. In several European cases including Germany, international teams of lawyers have prepared universal jurisdiction cases using the so-called Caesar Files. In Geneva, five years after the creation of the UN Commission of Inquiry on Syria by the UN Human Rights Council, the International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM) was established by UN General Assembly resolution. Syrian civil society organisations have also engaged with the field of transitional justice, mobilizing around specific issues such as enforced disappearances in Syria. Taking a political geography perspective, this paper proposes to explore the perspectives of Syrian refugees in Germany and Lebanon regarding these transitional justice initiatives. It analyses the ‘invented spaces’ (Jeffrey 2011) created by civil society organisations and those most affected by human rights violations in order to discuss transitional justice options in the context of Syria. It also examines the ways in which the places that refugees inhabit shapes their imaginaries of, and possibilities of engagement for, transitional justice. It is based on qualitative in-depth interviews conducted in 2018 and 2019 with Syrian refugees in Germany and Lebanon, as well as with members of Syrian and international civil society organisations. Whilst focusing on the context of Syria, this paper reflects on implications for the broader field of transitional justice, in particular regarding the peace vs. justice debate, which is well rehearsed in the field, but also the increasing recognition of the significant roles diaspora communities and transnational mobilisations can play in transitional justice processes. In that regard, it asks to what extent the context of Syria suggests a reconfiguration of who is usually involved, and how, in the field of transitional justice, and brings together innovative approaches in the fight against impunity that have emerged in various contexts over the past few years.