In post-apartheid South Africa, reconciliation was the second element of the famous “Truth and Reconciliation Commission” (TRC). The South African TRC was only one of many similar initiatives in history such as those set up in Rwanda after the 1994 genocide or even the Nuremburg Trials of 1945-1946. While the success of these past initiatives is relative, they share the common thread of truth as a precondition to reconciliation. 
 

In South Africa, the TRC includes opportunities for victims of violent crimes to tell their stories and for perpetrators to face the truth and consequences of their actions (or inaction). Yet this process is inherently flawed. It is predicated upon those who have been on the receiving end of injustice retelling their stories and reliving their trauma. This is complicated further by the uncertainly of the outcome of such a process. 
 

Can oppressors and offenders own up to their action or inaction and understand the ways in which these have caused hurt? What kind of response can adequately validate the retelling and reliving of traumatic experiences? This presentation seeks to highlight lessons about “truth and reconciliation” from history and invite participants to identify current barriers to truth and reconciliation in the current space.