Truth commission

• TORONTO, Sept. 21, 2023 /CNW/ - Today TD Bank Group ("TD" or the "Bank") released its TD and Indigenous Communities in Canada – 2023 Report , outlining the Bank's commitment to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's Calls to Action and sharing its approach to supporting the social and economic inclusion and equity of Indigenous Peoples.
• "At TD, we know reconciliation is multifaceted and continuous, for each of us as individuals and collectively as a Bank," said Doris Bear, Vice President of Indigenous Banking at TD Bank Group.
• The TD and Indigenous Communities in Canada – 2023 Report summarizes TD's collaborations with and support for First Nation, Métis, and Inuit people and communities between 2020 and early 2023.
• In 2023, the Bank announced the first cohort of 25 recipients of the TD Scholarship for Indigenous Peoples.

• They also mark a decade since the closure of the Special Court for Sierra Leone.
• The court prosecuted high level commanders deemed responsible for the suffering experienced during the war.
• Almost all the people of Sierra Leone were affected by the war, leaving an enduring scar on the country and the collective psyche.

Transitional justice mechanisms

• Transitional justice is justice adapted to societies undergoing transformation away from “normalised” human rights abuse.
• Sierra Leone became the first in which two transitional justice mechanisms were used.
• My research focused on the official transitional justice mechanisms and whether the underlying causes of the war continued to affect the people of Sierra Leone.

Transitional justice in the long term

• While in Sierra Leone, I had candid discussions on the implementation, limitations and legacy of the official transitional justice mechanisms.
• I found there were operational tensions between the Truth Commission and the Special Court, but having both gave Sierra Leoneans restorative and retributive justice.
• Restorative justice refers to “an approach to justice that seeks to repair harm by providing an opportunity for those harmed and those who take responsibility for the harm to communicate about and address their needs in the aftermath of a crime.” Retributive justice is a system of criminal justice based on the punishment of offenders rather than on rehabilitation.
• Considering the impact of the war, incorporating both mechanisms was essential in helping the society to reconcile and rebuild.
• This acknowledges collective trauma but works towards peace in the long term.

A long way forward

• This is because its mechanisms are put to work over a short period but aim at long-term and lasting peace.
• My research also explored the current situation in a more holistic way.
• These are the legacy of transitional justice and its relationship to long-term peace, and the resilience of the Sierra Leonean people.

• OTTAWA, ON, June 20, 2023 /CNW/ - On the eve of the Summer Solstice, a day of great significance for First Nations, Inuit and Métis people across Canada, the Royal Canadian Mint is honouring their rich and diverse cultural heritages with a $2 commemorative circulation coin celebrating National Indigenous Peoples Day.
• For the first time on a Canadian circulation coin, three different artists have collaborated on a single reverse design.
• "Since 1996, National Indigenous Peoples Day has been an opportunity to celebrate First Nations, Inuit, and Métis people," said The Honourable Chrystia Freeland, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.
• "National Indigenous Peoples Day is an opportunity to both celebrate and honour the diverse cultures of Métis, Inuit and First Nations.

• Press seminar on the Sakharov Prize for Freedom of Thought
  The Sakharov Prize honours the Ukrainian people, who are defending their country and core European values.
• Representatives of NGOs and public institutions will participate in the seminar
  Tuesday, 13 December 2022, 9:30 - 11:30
  Strasbourg - Room Weiss S 2.2 - Interactio - Webstreaming
  Interpretation: EN, ES, FR, UA, BG (tbc)
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  09:30 Welcome and practicalities
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  09:35 The Sakharov Prize
  Heidi HAUTALA (Greens/EFA, Finland), Vice-President of the European Parliament responsible for the Sakharov Network
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  09:45 Meeting with finalists of the Sakharov Prize 2022
  Francisco DE ROUX, President of The Truth Commission in Colombia (tbc)
  Stella ASSANGE, lawyer and wife of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, finalist of the Sakharov Prize 2022 (tbc)
  Introduced by Maria ARENA (S&D, Belgium), Chair of the Subcommittee on Human Rights (DROI)
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  Meeting with the laureates of the Sakharov Prize 2022: The brave people of Ukraine, represented by their president, elected leaders, and civil society
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  10:30 Panel 1
  Oleksandra MATVIYCHUK, human rights lawyer and Chair of the Center for Civil Liberties (tbc)
  Ivan FEDOROV, elected Mayor of Melitopol (tbc)
  Introduced by David McALLISTER (EPP, Germany), Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET)
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  11:00 Panel 2
  Serhiy KRUK, representative of the State Emergency Services (SES) of Ukraine (tbc)
  Yulia PAJEVSKA, founder of the evacuation medical unit Angels of Taira (tbc)
  Yaroslav BOZHKO, representative of the Yellow Ribbon Civil Resistance Movement (tbc)
  Introduced by Tomas TOB (EPP, Sweden), Chair of the Committee on Development (DEVE)
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  11:30 End of Seminar
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  Moderated by Raffaella DE MARTE, Head of the EP Media Services Unit, DG COMM