SEMINAR ON TRANSITIONAL JUSTICE AND INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS AND
HUMANITARIAN LAW: THEORY AND PRACTICE

Fall Semester
College of Law, National Taiwan University

2hrs/week, 18-week course



I. Course Description

Addressing legacies of pervasive human rights and humanitarian law violations is essential to breaking cycles of violence. But trying to render ‘justice for victims’ of mass atrocity and violations raises large conceptual and practical difficulties, particularly when a state’s political balance is delicate, society is divisive, prevailing narratives of the past are irreconcilable, resources are limited, and international actors get involved. Transitional justice has emerged as an approach to achieving ‘justice’ in these complex settings, when states are emerging from conflict and authoritarian rule.

This course is designed to provide students with an introductory understanding of transitional justice theory and the challenges faced when applying that theory in real contexts of transition to address legacies of mass human rights and humanitarian law violations.

The course is based on the Socratic teaching method, which requires student participation in class discussion. Students are expected to read assignments before coming to class. In addition to lectures and class discussions, a range of experiential and participatory learning methods will be employed, including group projects, presentations, and role plays. All instruction, discussions, assignments, and examinations, including all student input, will be conducted in English.

II. Course Schedule & Reading Schedule (To be determined) Week 1
a. Course Introduction

Week 2
a. Principles of Transitional Justice b. Overview of Mechanisms

Week 3 & 4
a. Contextualizing Transitional Justice: Focus areas: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Nepal, Southern
Thailand, Great Lakes Region (Africa)
b. Forms of Mass Atrocity and Violence – how does mass atrocity and violence begin, why does it happen, why does it continue, and who is 

1. 本校尚無訂定 A+ 比例上限。
2. 本校採用等第制評定成績，學生成績評量辦法中的百分制分數區間與單科成績對照表僅供參考，授課教師可依等第定義調整分數區間。詳見學習評量專區 (連結)。