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Throughout the countries of the former Yugoslavia the international law mandates prosecutions for crimes against humanity and genocide. These mandates are also meant to protect rights to truth and justice, combat impunity and provide restitution for the victims of war crimes. However, the tribunals that deal with these violations do not address the full range of crimes that were committed during the war in Kosovo or the multiple ways that war can impact individuals and communities. Underlying each of the transitional justice activities that we pursue is a commitment to uphold the rights of the victims and contribute to the holistic principles of transitional justice. An important conceptual framework for transitional justice conceives of victim’s rights as the right to know, the right to justice, the right to reparation and the right to non-recurrence. Through the process of researching and documenting Kosovo’s legacy of human rights violations we specifically enforce the right to know. We have also expanded our commitment to the victims of war by engaging in other activities including truth commissions, monitoring human rights and facilitating discussions about the past with women’s groups, ethnic minorities and victims associations. Through direct engagements with these groups we have achieved a greater awareness of victim’s needs and concerns.
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