Truth, Denial and Transition: Northern Ireland and the Contested Past (Transitional Justice)

__Truth, Denial and Transition: Northern Ireland and the Contested Past__ makes a unique and timely contribution to the transitional justice field. In contrast to the focus on truth and those societies where truth recovery has been central to dealing with the aftermath of human rights violations, comparatively little scholarly attention has been paid to those jurisdictions whose transition from violent conflict has been marked by the absence or rejection of a formal truth process. This book draws upon the case study of Northern Ireland, where, despite a lengthy debate, the question of establishing a formal truth recovery process remains hotly contested. The strongest and most vocal opposition has been from unionist political elites, loyalist ex-combatants and members of the security forces. Based on empirical research, their opposition is unpicked and interrogated at length throughout this book. Critically exploring notions of national imagination and blamelessness, the politics of victimhood and the tension between traditions of sacrifice and the fear of betrayal, this book is the first substantive effort to concentrate on the opponents of truth recovery rather than its advocates. This book will interest those studying truth processes and transitional justice in the fields of Law, Politics, and Criminology. "Truth, Denial and Transition addresses the ways in which the process of truth recovery in post-conflict societies is challenged and contested. Transitional justice scholarship and praxis has been a site of ever increasing activity in the past two decades and truth recovery is now considered an axiomatic element of the post conflict transition from political violence. Its purported benefits have been well rehearsed. Truth recovery is, however, one of the most formidable post-conflict challenges, particularly so in the face of efforts made by powerful actors who are keen to conceal their involvement (or silence) with regard to past abuses. In all transitional contexts, the dialectic between truth and denial is a key contest, yet little attention has been paid to those jurisdictions whose transitions from violent conflict have been marked by the rejection of a formal truth process. Questions as to why techniques of denial appear to persist and to what extent recovering truth about the past is essential for political and social reconciliation have, therefore, remain unanswered. This book draws on the case study of Northern Ireland to address these questions: exploring and critically analysing unionist, loyalist and military opposition to and distance from the truth recovery debate in Northern Ireland. Interrogating the resistance to truth in such contexts speaks to larger questions concerning identity formation and national imagination, notions of blamelessness and victimhood, traditions of sacrifice and the fear of betrayal, the othering of political opponents and the importance of timing in peacemaking. Linking these themes to a broad interdisciplinary literature, as well as specific literature on other jurisdictions, Truth, Denial and Transition makes a unique contribution to the international field of transitional justice and conflict transformation."-- Provided by publisher Truth, Denial and Transition addresses the ways in which the process of truth recovery in post-conflict societies is challenged and contested. Transitional justice scholarship and praxis has been a site of ever increasing activity in the past two decades and truth recovery is now considered an axiomatic element of the post conflict transition from political violence. Its purported benefits have been well rehearsed. Truth recovery is, however, one of the most formidable post-conflict challenges, particularly so in the face of efforts made by powerful actors who are keen to conceal their involvement (or silence) with regard to past abuses. In all transitional contexts, the dialectic between truth and denial is a key contest, yet little attention has been paid to those jurisdictions whose transitions from violent conflict have been marked by the rejection of a formal truth process. Questions as to why techniques of denial appear to persist and to what extent recovering truth about the past is essential for political and social reconciliation have, therefore, remain unanswered. This book draws on the case study of Northern Ireland to address these questions: exploring and critically analysing unionist, loyalist and military opposition to and distance from the truth recovery debate in Northern Ireland. Interrogating the resistance to truth in such contexts speaks to larger questions concerning identity formation and national imagination, notions of blamelessness and victimhood, traditions of sacrifice and the fear of betrayal, the othering of political opponents and the importance of timing in peacemaking. Linking these themes to a broad interdisciplinary literature, as well as specific literature on other jurisdictions, Truth, Denial and Transition makes a unique contribution to the international field of transitional justice and conflict transformation.--Résumé de l'éditeur Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Abbreviations Acknowledgements Foreword 1 Introduction Denial, silence and challenging the past: The international context Truth, transition and commissioning the past: Northern Ireland The politics of definitions Research design and methodology Chapter structure 2 Truth, denial and blamelessness Introduction Unionism, identity and imagining the past Truth, denial and blamelessness Denial, silence and the liberal democratic state Truth and playing the blame game Blame, ‘Othering’ and loyalists Conclusion 3 Truth, politics and victimhood Introduction Constructing the complex political victim Unionism, innocence and the politics of victimhood Truth, victimhood and the myth of equivalence Victimhood, hierarchies and truth as ‘whataboutery’ Conclusion 4 Truth, trust and (re-)writing the past Introduction Truth, trust and the past Mistrust, loss and the republican agenda Controlling the past: State centricity and the focus of investigation Trust, truth-telling and the patterns of the past Conclusion 5 Truth, confidence and loyalty Introduction Explaining ‘loyalty’ and ‘loyalism’ Truth, confidence and loyalty as silence Truth, power and selling the story Truth, loyalty and alienation Confidence and the structure of truth Conclusion 6 Truth, sacrifice and betrayal Introduction Transitional justice and keeping faith with the dead Northern Ireland, transition and the betrayal of sacrifice Truth, betrayal and appeasing ‘the other’ The ‘illusion’ of collusion Truth and sacrifice in service Professionalism, the Police Service of Northern Ireland and breaking with the past Conclusion 7 Conclusion: truth, transition and political responsibility Appendix: List of interviewees Bibliography Index "Truth, Denial and Transition: Northern Ireland and the Contested Past makes a unique and timely contribution to the transitional justice field. In contrast to the focus on truth and those societies where truth recovery has been central to dealing with the aftermath of human rights violations, comparatively little scholarly attention has been paid to those jurisdictions whose transition from violent conflict has been marked by the absence or rejection of a formal truth process. Using Northern Ireland as a case study to examine the truth recovery debate, this book analyses the opposition to recovering truth in the aftermath of violent conflict. Based on empirical research, including interviews with unionist political elites, loyalist ex-combatants and members of the security forces, this book unpicks and interrogates this opposition. Critically exploring notions of national imagination and blamelessness, the politics of victimhood and the tension between traditions of sacrifice and the fear of betrayal, this book is the first substantive effort to concentrate on the opponents of truth recovery rather than its advocates. Comprised of original research and new insights, this book will interest those studying truth processes and transitional justice in the fields of Law, Politics, and Criminology"-- Provided by publisher