I. WHAT IS THE HCRRUN?
The HCRRUN is the High Commission for Reconciliation and the Strengthening of National Unity (Haut-Commissariat à la Réconciliation et au Renforcement de l’Unité Nationale). It was created at the proposal of the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission (CVJR), in accordance with Recommendation No. 57, which suggested the creation, by law, of a body responsible for implementing the reparations programme or, failing that, entrusting this mission to the High Commission for Reconciliation and the Strengthening of National Unity (HCRRUN), which had been established in 2008.
It should be noted that the Truth, Justice and Reconciliation Commission’s ultimate objective was to work towards national reconciliation, civil peace and political stability.
II. WHY THE CVJR?
The signing, on 20 August 2006, of the Global Political Agreement (GPA) by Togo’s sociopolitical stakeholders called, in points 2.2.2 and 2.4, for the establishment of a Commission tasked with shedding light on acts of violence committed in the past, and of another body tasked with providing redress to victims.
III. WHO CREATED THE HCRRUN?
The HCRRUN was established by Decree No. 2013-040/PR of 24 May 2013, as amended by Decree No. 2014-103/PR of 3 April 2014.
IV. WHAT IS THE MISSION OF THE HCRRUN?
The HCRRUN’s mission is to implement the recommendations and the reparations programme drawn up by the CVJR.
HOW?
By carrying out the following actions:
- Proposing all legislative, regulatory or institutional measures incorporating aspects of the CVJR’s recommendations on combating impunity, guarantees of non-recurrence, and reparations for victims;
- Proposing to the President of the Republic any measures likely to facilitate the fulfilment of its mandate;
- Managing the funds allocated to the reparations programme;
- Initiating actions likely to help establish a peaceful social and political climate, necessary for national reconciliation;
- Promoting the values of peaceful coexistence, a culture of dialogue and solidarity, and citizens’ participation in collective life founded on the acceptance of differences;
- Ensuring that all national bodies and stakeholders respect and effectively achieve the objectives of combating impunity and promoting reconciliation, peace and national unity;
- Ensuring the preservation of the CVJR’s archives and assets during its mandate.
V. WHAT IS THE COMPOSITION OF THE HCRRUN?
Pursuant to Decree No. 2014-211/PR of 24 December 2014 on the appointment of members, the High Commission for Reconciliation and the Strengthening of National Unity (HCRRUN) is composed of three members:
- A Chairperson;
- A First Rapporteur;
- A Second Rapporteur.
VI. WHO ARE THE CURRENT MEMBERS?
- Chairperson: Ms Awa Nana, retired Magistrate, former President of the ECOWAS Court of Justice;
- First Rapporteur: Dr Evalo Wiyao, academic and historian;
- Second Rapporteur: Ms Claudine Y. L. Kpondzo Ahianyo, literary scholar, former member of the CVJR.
VII. FOR HOW LONG ARE THEY APPOINTED?
Members of the HCRRUN are appointed for a term of three (3) years, renewable once, for an identical or different duration (Article 5 of the founding decree).
VIII. IS THE HCRRUN INDEPENDENT?
Yes. The HCRRUN enjoys administrative and managerial autonomy.
IX. WHERE DO ITS RESOURCES COME FROM?
In material and financial terms, its resources come from the State budget.
They also include donations or grants from Togo’s development partners and any other donors.
In terms of human resources, the HCRRUN may call upon any person whose expertise is deemed useful for the accomplishment of its mission.
X. IF THE HCRRUN IS INDEPENDENT, TO WHOM IS IT ACCOUNTABLE?
The HCRRUN submits a report at the end of each half-year and a consolidated annual report to the President of the Republic (cf. Article 8 of Decree No. 2014-103/PR).
An end-of-mandate report is also submitted to the President of the Republic.
All of these reports are made public.
XI. WHAT IS TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE?
Transitional justice is justice “in transition” — that is, it sits midway between conventional justice and restorative justice.
It comprises the set of judicial and non-judicial mechanisms designed to help a country move from a divided past towards a shared future.
It rests on four fundamental pillars:
- The right to truth, or the need to know;
- The right to justice (restorative or criminal);
- The right to reparation; and
- The obligation to carry out institutional reforms as guarantees of non-recurrence.
XII. WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND CONVENTIONAL JUSTICE?
Transitional justice is a victim-centred mechanism. It follows a special procedure and may choose between criminal prosecution and the healing of wounds through a reparations programme or process. It operates within a defined time limit and under a specific mandate.
Contrary to popular belief, the transitional justice mechanism is not a vector of impunity, but rather a set of measures adopted to combat it.
Conventional justice, on the other hand, is criminal justice — a judicial mechanism involving criminal procedures. It operates without a time limit and draws on a fairly broad range of evidence.
XIII. WHAT IS MEANT BY REPARATION IN TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE?
It is the recognition granted to an individual of their status as a victim, and consequently of their right to obtain compensation for the harm suffered.
In transitional justice, reparation must be adequate, effective and prompt. It must promote social justice by addressing violations of international human rights law or of international humanitarian law.
XIV. WHO MUST PROVIDE REPARATION?
The State. In accordance with its domestic legislation and its international legal obligations, the State ensures that victims receive reparation for the acts or omissions of its agents that may be attributed to it, insofar as they constitute violations of international human rights law or international humanitarian law.
XV. WHY THE STATE?
Because it failed in its obligation to ensure the protection of citizens within its territory. In doing so, the State incurred responsibility.
XVI. WHAT DOES THIS REPARATION CONSIST OF?
It does not consist of giving money to victims.
On the contrary, according to international standards, reparation may take five (5) forms:
16.1 Restitution
Restitution includes, as appropriate: the restoration of liberty, the enjoyment of human rights, identity, family life and citizenship, return to one’s place of residence, and the restitution of employment and property.
16.2 Compensation
This involves an economic assessment of each case, covering: physical or psychological harm; lost opportunities, including in relation to employment, education and social benefits; material damages and loss of income, including loss of earning potential; moral damage; costs incurred for legal or expert assistance, for medicines and medical services, and for psychological and social services.
16.3 Rehabilitation
This involves medical and psychological care, as well as access to legal and social services.
16.4 Satisfaction
This includes measures such as: effective procedures aimed at halting ongoing violations; full and public disclosure of the truth; the search for missing persons, for the identity of abducted children and for the bodies of those killed, together with assistance in recovering, identifying and reburying remains; restoration of dignity; public apologies, including acknowledgement of the facts and acceptance of responsibility; judicial and administrative sanctions against those responsible for the violations; commemorations and tributes to victims; and so on.
16.5 Guarantees of non-recurrence
These include measures that help prevent violence, such as: ensuring effective civilian oversight of the armed forces and security forces; ensuring that all civil and military proceedings comply with international standards of due process, fairness and impartiality; strengthening the independence of the judiciary; promoting mechanisms to prevent, monitor and resolve social conflicts; and reviewing and reforming laws that facilitate or permit gross violations of international human rights law and serious violations of international humanitarian law.
It is important to note that, when it comes to reparation and compensation, one can never promise the population more than what is actually available; attention must be drawn to everyone’s circumstances, and real, collective questions must be asked: where will the funds for individual reparation come from?
For this reason, every country that embarks on a transitional justice process adapts these five standard forms of reparation to its own socio-cultural context.
XVII. WHAT IS THE REPARATIONS PROGRAMME?
It is the set of measures a State adopts to provide satisfaction and/or compensation to persons it recognises as victims of violations within a given framework. This programme also allows the State to determine the timeframe within which reparations will be made and the form they will take.
XVIII. WHAT IS PEACE?
Peace has several definitions. It refers to:
- a set of values, attitudes and behaviours that allow an individual to live in harmony with themselves, with others and with their environment;
- a situation in which individuals and communities express satisfaction with their relationships with one another and with the opportunities available to them to change those relationships;
- a way of behaving that presupposes mutual respect between individuals and the acceptance of all.
XIX. WHAT IS SOCIAL COHESION?
Social cohesion refers to a positive change in relationships among the inhabitants of a given community — people who have, at some point, chosen to set aside their social, political, religious and other differences in order to build their community together and to jointly overcome their difficulties so as to live in harmony.
XX. WHAT LINKS THESE THREE THINGS: THE REPARATIONS PROGRAMME, PEACE AND SOCIAL COHESION?
It is the outcome to be achieved. Once the reparations programme is implemented, even if it does not fully compensate victims, an atmosphere of peace and satisfaction will emerge that fosters good relations among citizens. Such relations, in turn, will enable people to come together to build their communities.
XXI. WHAT IS THE CITIZEN’S CONTRIBUTION TO RECONCILIATION AND THE STRENGTHENING OF NATIONAL UNITY?
Citizens must support the HCRRUN’s activities by helping to spread messages of peace and coexistence, and by suggesting further actions likely to foster satisfaction and guarantees of non-recurrence.
XXII. HOW COULD THE REPARATIONS PROGRAMME LEAD TO PEACE AND SOCIAL COHESION?
22.1 Will the HCRRUN grant victims reparations commensurate with the harm they suffered?
The HCRRUN will do everything possible to grant victims fair and adequate reparations that take account of the wrongs done to them. However, it is sometimes difficult for the reparation granted to correspond exactly to the harm suffered by a given victim. Through the reparations programme, the State recognises not only victims’ status but also their right to reparation, even if that reparation cannot fully meet their expectations.
22.2 Will everyone who came forward before the CVJR as a victim be entitled to reparations?
Yes and no.
Yes, if, after reviewing the case files transmitted by the CVJR, the HCRRUN finds that those who came forward as victims are indeed victims and are eligible for the reparations programme under the established criteria.
No, because if the investigations reveal that the facts recounted by a purported victim before the CVJR were false, that person will not be entitled to any reparation measure. The same applies to victims who themselves took part in violating the rights of other citizens.
22.3 Who sets the eligibility criteria for the reparations programme?
Many criteria have already been established by the CVJR and incorporated into its recommendations. For example, the CVJR adopted a criterion stating that any victim identified as a perpetrator of abuses or serious human rights violations is excluded from the reparations programme (CVJR Recommendation No. 37). Generally speaking, only victims of politically motivated violence will receive reparations. Accordingly, if the harm suffered by a victim falls under ordinary law, that person will not receive reparation, since such violations are not covered by the GPA’s recommendations, the CVJR’s recommendations, or the HCRRUN’s mandate (point 2.1 of the reparations programme).
22.4 How will victims and the public learn of these criteria?
Participants in the workshop held in Notsé from 21 to 25 July 2015 on the theme “Reparation for victims in the transitional justice process” issued a “Call to Commitment” addressed to all stakeholders involved in the reconciliation process, as well as to those responsible for running the HCRRUN, urging them to “make information relating to reparations available and transparent” by disseminating it widely through all communication channels. The HCRRUN will do everything in its power to ensure that the entire population clearly understands the criteria governing entitlement to reparations.
22.5 What immediate objective is the HCRRUN pursuing through this reparations programme?
The objective pursued through the reparations programme is to ease victims’ suffering and console them, since for many years these victims have borne, alone, the physical or psychological pain resulting from the violation of their rights. Reparations are also an expression of solidarity from the population as a whole towards victims. As such, they help establish more harmonious relations among Togolese citizens and strengthen the bonds of belonging to a shared nation.
22.6 More broadly, and in concrete terms, what outcome does the HCRRUN expect from the implementation of the reparations programme?
Through the reparations programme, the HCRRUN hopes to create better conditions for consolidating peace and cohesion among all components of Togolese society. The reparations programme is therefore a tool for affirming the identity of the Togolese people, allowing them to recognise themselves through their history and, above all, to redress the wrongs committed. Ultimately, it is a tool for strengthening reconciliation and unity among the people of Togo.