How reconciliation has been used to escape accountability

IN BOTH Britain and South Africa, we are told that reconciliation is the noble path after violence.

- DUGAN BROWN

But what happens when reconciliation becomes a tool to protect the state, rather than hold it accountable?

In 2023, the United Kingdom passed the Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Act, a law that effectively shuts down all criminal investigations and civil claims relating to conflict-era killings.

Under the guise of “reconciliation,” it offers immunity to perpetrators who cooperate with a state-appointed truth commission. In other words, it closes the door on justice and hands the keys to the very state that stood accused of abuse.

While it may sound like a distant political issue, this is a story South Africans know all too well.