Reparations and War: Finding Balance in Repairing the Past - Hardcover

Moffett, Luke

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0192865587 ISBN 13: 9780192865588

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2023

Synopsis

War devastates the lives of those who are caught up in it. For thousands of years, reparations have been used to secure the end of war and alleviate its deleterious consequences. More recently, human rights law has established that victims have a right to reparations. Yet, in the face of conflicts that last for decades with millions of victims, how feasible are reparations? And what are the obstacles to delivering them?

Using interviews with hundreds of victims, ex-combatants, government officials, and civil society actors from six post-conflict countries, Reparations and War examines the history, theoretical justifications, and practical challenges of implementing reparations after war. It examines the role of non-state armed groups in making reparations, the role of victim mobilisation, the evolving use of reparations, and the political instrumentalization of redress.

Luke Moffett offers a measured and honest account of what reparations can and cannot do. This book sheds new light on how reparations can be politically manipulated, or used to reward those loyal to the State, rather than to achieve justice for the victims who suffer.

About this title

About the Author

Luke Moffett, Law Reader, Queen's University Belfast

Dr Luke Moffett is a Law Reader at Queen's University Belfast. He is Principal Investigator of the Arts and Humanities Research Council project 'Reparations, Responsibility and Victimhood in Transitional Societies'. He has written extensively on victims' rights, reparations, and international justice, as well as being involved in efforts to secure reparations for victims.

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2023
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0192865587
• ISBN 13: 9780192865588
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 336