A turning-point for transitional justice? Political violence in Zimbabwe, and transformative justice as a way forward

Abstract

Since 2000, elections in Zimbabwe have been hotly disputed and marred by violence. Victims of politically orchestrated violence have received neither apology nor compensation from the government. Whilst transitional justice mechanisms such as the due processes of law, closure for victims, indemnification, and the restructuring of state institutions are essential to ensure justice, there is a need to go beyond the legal system and focus on socio-economic issues. Transitional justice's emphasis on the state and institutions is not enough, margins, places greater emphasis on transformative justice, which it sees as a step towards grassroots reconciliation and the prevention of further rights violations. Transformative justice emphasises peacebuilding initiatives, as well as conflict transformation and development, in the interests of securing sustainability in the future. The study does not dismiss or reject transitional justice as a field of practice and scholarship, but argues rather that transformative justice can complement it. While transitional justice should be applauded for identifying the core themes that characterise and establish a terminus a quo for ensuring justice, the dilemmas raised in allied disciplines and contemporary scholarship and practice call for a broader framework informed by an intersectional analysis of the complexities and contradictions of state -society relations.