Moral Ambition Within and Beyond Political Constraints
Moral Ambition Within and Beyond Political Constraints
Restorative justice is painted in many lights, especially in terms of the truth commission in South Africa. Restorative and retributive justice is examined along with truth in relation to justice when looking at the effects of truth commissions. In Elizabeth Kiss’s essay, Moral Ambition Within and Beyond Political Constraints, these ideas are explored and challenged in the perception of the South African commission and many more.
Kiss begins by talking about the role truth can serve in the commission, not only to the victims but also to the perpetrator. The idea of “truth serves justice” comes about initially in the passage as it shows some of the benefits of having the whole real truth being told. A great example of this is in the Argentinian truth commission its report (Nunca Mas) stated, “without truth one cannot distinguish the innocent from the guilty. Less directly, truth serves justice by overcoming fear and distrust and by breaking the cycles of violence and oppression that characterize profoundly unjust societies” (71). Here the idea of truth is seen as the catalyst in a way to spark what lies after in a truth commission. So without truth not only can one not distinguish the innocent from the guilty but it can also help to break the same abusive cycle plaguing the nation. When the truth is not exposed, it can “poison societies” and create the cycles of distrust and violence that have been seen so many times before. The truth helps to point a clear and decipherable picture of the atrocities and gives a level of understanding that can help prevent it from ever happening again. Truth can also provide a healing or therapeutic element to the victims as well. For example we see this in a statement made by a victim blinded by past police officer saying, “I feel what has been making me sick all the time is the fact that I couldn’t tell my story. But now it feels like I got my sight back by
Restorative justice is painted in many lights, especially in terms of the truth commission in South Africa. Restorative and retributive justice is examined along with truth in relation to justice when looking at the effects of truth commissions. In Elizabeth Kiss’s essay, Moral Ambition Within and Beyond Political Constraints, these ideas are explored and challenged in the perception of the South African commission and many more.
Kiss begins by talking about the role truth can serve in the commission, not only to the victims but also to the perpetrator. The idea of “truth serves justice” comes about initially in the passage as it shows some of the benefits of having the whole real truth being told. A great example of this is in the Argentinian truth commission its report (Nunca Mas) stated, “without truth one cannot distinguish the innocent from the guilty. Less directly, truth serves justice by overcoming fear and distrust and by breaking the cycles of violence and oppression that characterize profoundly unjust societies” (71). Here the idea of truth is seen as the catalyst in a way to spark what lies after in a truth commission. So without truth not only can one not distinguish the innocent from the guilty but it can also help to break the same abusive cycle plaguing the nation. When the truth is not exposed, it can “poison societies” and create the cycles of distrust and violence that have been seen so many times before. The truth helps to point a clear and decipherable picture of the atrocities and gives a level of understanding that can help prevent it from ever happening again. Truth can also provide a healing or therapeutic element to the victims as well. For example we see this in a statement made by a victim blinded by past police officer saying, “I feel what has been making me sick all the time is the fact that I couldn’t tell my story. But now it feels like I got my sight back by