The amnesty offered to those who perpetuated human rights atrocities in Sierra Leone is not an isolated situation, but it is increasingly becoming atypical, because the drive to investigate, prosecute, and provide compensation has a momentum like a rising tide. Each fact situation, and each political context, is different, so generalizations are difficult. But in most parts of the world we now see a commitment to address human rights abuses, to punish the perpetrators of such actions, and to bring justice, compensation, and a sense of closure to the victims. The list of current efforts to achieve justice is long, and is worldwide in geographic scope. The goal in each case is to achieve a reconciliation to allow the country to go forward together, without always returning to the past for a reexamination resulting from a sense of a people wronged.
Reconciliation is a powerful word.
It is not just a feel-good concept, which can be achieved by a few words of sorrow followed by some handshakes or hugs. It requires making right the wrong that occurred. A formal apology is a crucial element of any reconciliation process. II.44 B. Investigation and Accounting. Documentation of the wrongdoing serves the important purpose of recognizing the suffering and acknowledging that wrongdoing occurred.