They must also decide who should be held accountable for past injustices, or whether anyone should be held accountable. In addition to issues of transitional justice, new democracies face a number of challenges. The new government often faces a situation where civil society is virtually absent, having been destroyed by years of repression. There may be little public understanding of democratic principles, such as the rule of law. The civilian government may be faced with a powerful and possibly antagonistic military, and with severe economic problems.
New democracies face three specific challenges in making a just transition from the old regime.
The new government must decide what to do with members of the old ruling elite. They must decide what to do with lower-level officials in the old regime. And they must decide how to respond to public frustration with the speed or extent of transitional justice. New democracies have three basic options open to them. They may attempt to uncover and punish all the crimes of the old regime.