New Episode of Memory Cultures in Dialogue: „Reconciliation through RECOM“ (in BCS)

New Episode of Memory Cultures in Dialogue: „Reconciliation through RECOM“ (in BCS)

Kulture sećanja - Audio - Story - 1The initiative to establish the Regional Commission for Establishing the Facts about War Crimes and Other Serious Human Rights Violations in the former Yugoslavia (RECOM) attracted significant attention from both domestic and international audiences. Among the various initiatives for truth-seeking and justice, the RECOM initiative stood out due to its originality and sustainability.

Denisa Kostovicova’s new book, Reconciliation by Stealth: How People Talk about War Crimes, analyzes the consultations initiated by civil society activists between 2006 and 2011. These consultations aimed to define the nature and scope of the regional truth commission and culminated in the drafting and adoption of the RECOM Statute. Although states have since withdrawn support for a regional approach to dealing with the legacy of a shared past, RECOM Reconciliation Network research projects continue.

Reconciliation by Stealth offers a new approach to evaluating the effects of transitional justice in post-conflict societies. Through her research on Yugoslav wars, Denisa Kostovicova raises the question of what happens when former adversaries discuss the legacy of violence and crimes and whether it is possible to do so without further deepening hostilities.

Dr. Denisa Kostovicova is a leading expert in post-conflict reconstruction, justice in the Balkans, and peacebuilding, with a special interest in post-conflict justice processes. She works at the European Institute at the London School of Economics and Political Science, and her work has shaped policy in the European Union, the United Nations, and the United Kingdom.

The author and host of the podcast is Dr. Olivera Simić, an associate professor at the Griffith University Law School in Australia and a visiting fellow at the Transitional Justice Institute at Ulster University in Belfast. The conversation was conducted in BCS language.

Episode 29: „Reconciliation through RECOM“ is available at the following link, as well as on as well as on Spotify, Apple Podcast, Podcast.rs, Podcast Addict, accounts of the HLC

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