ABSTRACT
This chapter addresses the key themes that structure debates on how a legacy of violent conflict should be dealt with. By way of reference to the international literature and experiences drawn from a range of jurisdictions, three areas were explored debates on the need for truth, the purported strengths and weaknesses of material and symbolic reparations and victims' rights. The chapter discusses the key debates associated with the concepts: the need for truth about past atrocities; the purported benefits of material and symbolic reparations; and the question of the rights of victims of political violence and terrorism. Recovering truth about past actions and inactions is often argued to be one of the most pressing demands in the aftermath of violent conflict. For many victims of violent conflict, the linkage between participation in a truth recovery process and the prospect of healing the legacies of the past is compelling.
