Marie Deschamps, former judge of the Supreme Court of Canada, and Hassan Jallow, a Gambian lawyer and jurist, highlighted some of the challenges in dealing with sexual violence during George Soros Visiting Chair Yasmin Sooka's course on transitional justice. "Looking into cases of sexual abuse is always challenging since the conclusions we draw are not only about changing policies but also require a change in mindset," warned Deschamps. "While the dynamics of conflict vary across countries, we see that sexual violence is a cross-cutting issue that plays a significant role in many conflicts. This is why it is important to understand why and how crimes of sexual violence should be resolved during the post-conflict period," added Sooka.
Deschamps spoke about her experience of reviewing sexual assault cases in the Canadian Armed Forces. In 2014, the Canadian government ordered an external review of the sexual assault crisis in reaction to a growing number of cases. Deschamps admitted that at the beginning of the process, she had to look for examples of legislation on sexual abuse in the U.S., Australia, and France. "Many unit commanders were suspicious of my intervention because no similar review had taken place in the Canadian Army in the past. It was a new feeling for an experienced judge to sit before big guys with tattoos revealing cases of sexual abuse in their units." Her investigation resulted in a report that offered concrete recommendations requiring a change in military culture. "The role of the media was crucial for actually implementing some of the report's recommendations that would have otherwise only been acknowledged."
Pioneering prosecutions on sexual assault was also challenging for Jallow, a Gambian lawyer and jurist who was appointed prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda by the UN Security Council. "We found that more than 250,000 people were subjected to sexual violence during the genocide in Rwanda," stated Jallow. "One of our biggest achievements is that Rwanda now has legal procedures for sexual violence crimes in its legal system." The prosecutor revealed some other difficulties that the tribunal faced when prosecuting genocide. "We had to find a way to identify the leaders behind crimes against humanity. Working with witnesses was challenging, especially in cases involving high-level leaders because we had to relocate them and their families outside of the country for reasons of safety."
These discussions during Sooka's course helped students understand the process of transitional justice. This is information they will need in order to complete an assignment that Sooka has given them: to come up with practical recommendations for transitional justice processes in Colombia and Sri Lanka.