A/HRC/25/49
Commission on Human Rights, Cherif Bassiouni (E/CN.4/2000/62), formed the basis for
the Basic Principles and Guidelines on the Right to a Remedy and Reparation for Victims
of Gross Violations of International Human Rights Law and Serious Violations of
International Humanitarian Law, adopted by the General Assembly in resolution 60/147.
31.
In that resolution, the General Assembly reiterated that memorial processes are part
of the broader issue of reparations and recognized that satisfaction should include, where
applicable and amongst other important elements such as verification of the facts and full
and public disclosure of the truth, an official declaration or a judicial decision restoring the
dignity, the reputation and the rights of the victim and of persons closely connected with
the victim; a public apology, including acknowledgement of the facts and acceptance of
responsibility; commemorations and tributes to the victims and inclusion of an accurate
account of the violations that occurred in international human rights law and international
humanitarian law training and in educational material at all levels.
32.
United Nations mechanisms have not yet undertaken a global study to examine
memorial practices in the light of these principles. However, some United Nations reports
relating to specific country contexts usefully draw attention to this subject. For example, the
mapping report of 2010 on human rights abuses committed between 1993 and 2003 in the
Democratic Republic of the Congo forcefully stresses the need to preserve the memory of
the violations and, examining concrete examples, points out the danger of memorialization
inciting revenge.15 Similarly, the report of the Working Group on Enforced or Involuntary
Disappearances on its mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina concluded that the issue of
memorials had caused much controversy and unhappiness in the country
(A/HRC/16/48/Add.1, para. 48). The Working Group also carefully considered the
implementation of the recommendations of the Equity and Reconciliation Commission of
Morocco regarding community reparations, including the conversion of former detention
centres into memorials (A/HRC/13/31/Add.1, paras. 56-66).
B.
Diplomatic conferences
33.
Major conferences on the Holocaust in the 1990s and 2000s in London, Washington,
D.C. and Stockholm contributed to firmly establishing symbolic reparation as an integral
part of the international agenda. Participants shared a commitment to commemorate the
victims, to honour those who stood against the Holocaust and to encourage appropriate
forms of Holocaust remembrance in their countries.16
34.
The gap in memorialization regarding slave trades and colonization was addressed at
the World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination Xenophobia and Related
Intolerance in 2001. In the Durban Declaration, States acknowledged and profoundly
regretted the massive human suffering and the plight of millions of men, women and
children caused by slavery, the slave trade, including the transatlantic slave trade, apartheid,
genocide and colonialism. They called upon the States concerned to honour the memories
of the victims of past tragedies. Noting that some had taken steps expressing regret,
remorse or apologies, they called on all those who had not yet contributed to restoring the
dignity of the victims to find appropriate ways to do so. The deliberations were particularly
stormy, as some Western countries feared that an obligation to express repentance would
lead to claims for financial compensation.
15
16
8
See http://www.ohchr.org/Documents/Countries/ZR/DRC_MAPPING_REPORT_FINAL_EN.pdf,
paras. 1006–1115 in particular.
Declaration of the Stockholm International Forum on the Holocaust, para. 6.