My Neighbor, My Enemy
Justice and Community in the Aftermath of Mass Atrocity

Explores the effects of war-crime trials and how societies rebuild after ethnic cleansing and genocide.

Eric Stover (Edited by), Harvey M. Weinstein (Edited by)

9780521542647, Cambridge University Press

Paperback, published 2 December 2004

372 pages, 15 tables
22.8 x 15.3 x 2.8 cm, 0.596 kg

"Harvey Weinstein and Eric Stover's edited collection represents, to my knowledge, the first book-length effort to empirically assess the process of social reconstruction and reconciliation in several post-conflict societies, and to ask, what evidence is there for the claims made by international lawyers and others?...This book is essential reading for anyone involved in the emergent transitional justice "industry," as a caution against hubris and simple-minded therapeutic claims, and as a corrective to intoxicating beliefs in the power of international interventions in post-conflict societies." - Global Law Books, Hehal Buhta, NYU School of Law

My Neighbour, My Enemy tackles a crucial and highly topical issue - how do countries rebuild after ethnic cleansing and genocide? And what role do trials and tribunals play in social reconstruction and reconciliation. By talking with people in Rwanda and the former Yugoslavia and carrying out extensive surveys, the authors explore what people think about their past and the future. Their conclusions controversially suggest that international or local trials have little relevance to reconciliation. Communities understand justice far more broadly than it is defined by the international community and the relationship of trauma to a desire for trials is not clear-cut. The authors offer an ecological model of social reconstruction and conclude that coordinated multi-systemic strategies must be implemented if social repair is to occur. Finally, the authors suggest that while trials are essential to combat impunity and punish the guilty, their strengths and limitations must be acknowledged.

List of contributors
Foreword Ariel Dorfman
Acknowledgments
Introduction: conflict, justice and reclamation Harvey M. Weinstein and Eric Stover
Part I. Institutional Approaches to Justice: Introduction
1. A world unto itself? The application of international justice in the former Yugoslavia Laurel E. Fletcher and Harvey M. Weinstein
2. Legal responses to genocide in Rwanda Alison des Forges and Timothy Longman
3. Localizing justice: gacaca courts in post-genocide Rwanda Urusaro Alice Karekezi, Alphonse Nshimiyimana and Beth Mutamba
4. Exhumation of mass graves: balancing legal and humanitarian needs Eric Stover and Rachel Shigekane
5. Witnesses and the promise of justice in The Hague Eric Stover
6. Reparations in the aftermath of repression and mass violence Naomi Roht-Arriaza
Part II. Social Reconstruction and Justice: Introduction
7. Neighbors again? Intercommunity relations after ethnic cleansing Dinka Corkalo, Dean Ajdukovic, Harvey M. Weinstein, Eric Stover, Dino Djipa and Miklos Biro
8. Memory, identity, and community in Rwanda Timothy Longman and Théonèste Rutagengwa
9. Attitudes toward justice and social reconstruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia Miklos Biro, Dean Ajdukovic, Dinka Corkalo, Dina Djipa, Petar Milin and Harvey M. Weinstein
10. Connecting justice to human experience: attitudes toward accountability and reconciliation in Rwanda Timothy Longman, Phuong Pham and Harvey M. Weinstein
11. Public education and social reconstruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia Sarah Warshauer Freedman, Dinka Corkalo, Naomi Levy, Dino Abazovic, Bronwyn Leebaw, Dean Ajdukovic, Dino Djipa and Harvey M. Weinstein
12. Confronting the past in Rwandan schools Sarah Warshauer Freedman, Déo Kambanda, Beth Lewis Samuelson, Innocent Mugisha, Immaculée Mukashema, Evode Mukama, Jean Mutabaruka, Harvey M. Weinstein and Timothy Longman
Part III. Survivors and Justice: Introduction
13. Art out of the rubble Pamela Blotner
14. Trust and betrayal in war Dean Ajdukovic and Dinka Corkalo
15. Empathy and rehumanization after mass violence Jodi Halpern and Harvey M. Weinstein
Conclusion: a common objective, a universe of alternatives Eric Stover and Harvey M. Weinstein
Index.

Subject Areas: International humanitarian law [LBBS], Human rights [JPVH], Social, group or collective psychology [JMH], Sociology & anthropology [JH]