CEJIL 30 Years: The Palace of Justice

Image: original art by Yeye Torres (IG @ye2draws) 

JUAN GABRIEL VÁSQUEZ ABOUT THE PALACE OF JUSTICE

The persistence of lies and the proliferation of unanswered questions are as much a part of the legacy of war as the crimes themselves, and often represent a psychological wound capable of causing untold suffering. Anyone who has come into contact with the testimonies of the victims understands the restorative effect that the simple act of counting the wounds has, of seeing their account collected by a legitimate institution and feeling that, thanks to the account collected, their pain receives the recognition of the community. Post-conflict societies are always battling with various contradictions, but one of the most difficult is undoubtedly this: remembering the past, and doing it accurately and without censorship, is the only effective way to begin forgetting. It is one of the paradoxes of violence: to forget the damage, our first task is to remember it correctly.

But this is even more difficult than it sounds. Evasions and denial, obfuscation or outright concealment, and above all deliberate forgetfulness — that is, all the mechanisms with which a society, through anyone’s voice, is rendered unaware of the suffering of a human being — rob those who have suffered from an important part of what is needed to begin possible healing. And, since a civil conflict is also the confrontation of various ways of telling a story to the world, establishing a truth in which everyone can recognize each other becomes an indispensable requirement of any promise of compromise, however imperfect it may be.

…..

Interested in supporting our work? Donate to CEJIL here: