Structure & Outline 2012
DATE: Monday, 13 August 2012 - Friday, 24 August 2012.
VENUE: Parkhotel Oberhofen, Switzerland
The detailed programme of the DwP Course 2012 will be available for download soon. To see the programme of previous courses please click here.
The DwP Course 2012 consists of a two week resident module in Switzerland.
The course is intended to provide an in-depth understanding of the core issues and key challenges in dealing with a legacy of grave human rights violations in post-conflict societies.
During the course, participants will be introduced to the principles against impunity as a conceptual framework for Dealing with the Past and will explore options in applying a holistic approach to Dealing with the Past in their own contexts. Special attention will be given to community-based approaches and to the potential of DwP for conflict transformation
First week (Monday 13 August – Saturday 18 August 2012)
The first week of the course is dedicated to an in-depth understanding of the conceptual framework for Dealing with the Past based on the principles against impunity. The participants will learn about current developments in the field, including best practices and lessons learned from renowned experts, who will present an overview of the different mechanisms and their objectives, e.g. international and mixed tribunals, truth commissions, reparation programs, institutional reform measures, as well as entry points and strategies at the national level to dismantle impunity and to strengthen the rule of law.
The course will employ a variety of pedagogical tools, focusing on an interactive learning process that includes plenary presentations and ‘master classes’ with the resource persons in residence, panel discussions, working groups, and a simulation.
On Sunday the participants will have the possibility to discover the beautiful landscape around the Lake of Thun in an excursion to one of the peaks surrounding the lake.
Second week (Monday 20 August – Friday 24 August 2012)
In the second week of the course, specific aspects of DwP and conflict transformation will be addressed with a focus on victim-perpetrator dynamics and community-based approaches in dealing with trauma. Other topics include the transformation of social identities, designing strategies and building alliances for dealing with the past on local and national levels, and steps and stages in a process of reconciliation.A series of ‘artisan workshops’ will allow participants to exchange practical knowledge on issues such as archives, oral history, and memorialization drawn from experience in a number of post-conflict contexts, among them Colombia, Northern-Ireland, and South Africa. During the course, the participants will develop their own research paper about some specific aspect of Dealing with the Past in their respective contexts.
A number of renowned experts will be in residence as resource persons during the two weeks of the course. For more information on Resource Persons click here.