Are We There Yet? Truth Recovery and Acknowledgement Proposals
Acknowledgement: Develop an agreed process that allows for groups/organisations to make statements of acknowledgement relating to their role in the conflict in and about Northern Ireland. This process will have an element of genuine engagement with the potential audience, demonstrate sincerity of intent and a commitment to a peaceful future.
Truth Recovery: Develop a comprehensive framework for truth recovery which can uncover as much information as possible to support people who have been most impacted by the past.
In 2014, Healing Through Remembering published the Are We There Yet? report, which outlines our proposals on each of these themes based on our reflective engagement, experience and work in this area over the previous 14 years.
Truth Recovery & Acknowledgement are part of a set of proposals on dealing with the past relating to the conflict in and about Northern Ireland. Healing Through Remembering believes these proposals would be best implemented as a comprehensive response to ensure that a range of complex but interrelated needs are met. Click on the images to the right to access the full recommendations for Truth Recovery and Acknowledgement.
Original 2002 Recommendation
The Healing Through Remembering Report of 2002 recommended that all organisations and institutions that have been engaged in the conflict, including the British and Irish States, the political parties and loyalist and republican paramilitaries, should honestly and publicly acknowledge responsibility for past political violence due to their acts of omission and commission. This would be seen as the first and necessary step having the potentiality of a larger process of truth recovery. When acknowledgement is forthcoming, we recommend that measured, inclusive and in-depth consideration be given to establishing an appropriate and unique truth recovery process. For this to develop, a team with local and international expertise should be established using a fair and transparent method to explore the specific feasibility of such a process.
The specific purpose of a truth recovery process, if it were to be developed, would be to:
- Promote reconciliation, peace and healing; and to reduce tensions resulting from past violence;
- Clarify and acknowledge as much unresolved truth about the past as possible;
- Respond to the needs and interests of victims;
- Contribute to justice in a broad sense, ensure accountability and responsibility for past actions from organisations and institutions, as well as potentially from individuals; and,
- Identify the responsibilities of States, of republican and loyalist organisations, and of other institutions and organisations for the violence of the past; and to make recommendations for change that will reduce the likelihood of future conflict.