A new project with a grant of more than DKK 6.3 million from the Independent Research Fund Denmark will investigate the social dynamics at stake when victims of war crimes receive reparations – especially how compensation can acknowledge suffering and provide hope while creating mistrust, inequality and local division.

The new research project is led by Christian Gade and is titled: "The Paradox of Reparations: A Longitudinal and Comparative Study of ICC Reparations in Uganda". The project builds on previous research in Uganda, including the " After Access to Justice" project, which has examined the long-term consequences of making international criminal justice more accessible in local communities.

At a time when the number of civilian victims in international conflicts is increasing and demands for justice and reparations are becoming increasingly urgent, the International Criminal Court is facing its largest reparations proceedings to date in Uganda and DR Congo, which are likely to set a precedent for future large-scale reparations payments for war crimes.

But reparations are not without dilemmas.

"When tens of thousands of victims receive reparations, it can both create recognition and give hope – but also create mistrust, inequality and local division," explains Christian Gade.

The project examines this paradox based on two cases: reparations for an estimated 49,772 victims of former Lord's Resistance Army commander Dominic Ongwen in Uganda and 10,500 victims of former rebel leader Bosco Ntaganda in DR Congo.

Fieldwork with the victims
The research project builds on previous research in Uganda and expands the perspective to include DR Congo. Through questionnaires, interviews, and ethnographic fieldwork, the researchers examine how communities experience and interpret the processes of reparations, and how social dynamics and perceptions of justice evolve over time.

The project is the first longitudinal mixed methods study of large-scale reparations at the International Criminal Court.

The project team includes Senior Researcher Julaina Obika from Gulu University in Uganda and Professor Phil Clark from SOAS University of London, as well as a postdoc, a PhD student and a field assistant.

The project aims to elucidate the long-term local consequences of extensive reparations processes and to contribute knowledge that can inform the design and implementation of future reparations schemes under the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court. The Court has so far issued a total of 61 arrest warrants.   

"We hope to be able to provide knowledge that can inform future reparations processes and contribute to justice and sustainable peace," says Christian Gade.

In the long term, the goal is for the research to benefit the people who have been victims of war crimes. By creating knowledge about how reparations processes are experienced locally, the project can contribute to strengthening future efforts.

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Contact

Christian Gade, Associate Professor
Department of Anthropology
Aarhus University
Mail: gade@cas.au.dk
Phone: +45 8716 3276