Some notable truth commissions since 1974

List compiled by Helena Cobban, February 2005

(My sources for this listing are as follows: Appendix 1, Chart 1, of  Priscilla Hayner, Unspeakable truths: Confronting State Terror and Atrocity (New York and London: Routledge, 2001); the U.S. Institute of Peace's "Truth Commissions Digital Collection", available at <http://www.usip.org/library/truth.html>; the country studies and various other online resources available from the website of the International Center for Transitional Justice, <http://ictj.org/>; and, for the first item in Column 6, Freedom House's historical listings of the political rights and civil liberties situations of all the world's countries, available at <http://www.freedomhouse.org/ratings/allscore04.xls>.  For column 6, I looked primarily at whether the three-four years prior to the establishment of the commission had seen an improvement in political rights and civil liberties.)

Please feel free to use this compilation, but give me due credit.  I'd appreciate knowing if you plan to use it.  Also please send me any comments, suggestions, or queries you have.  Thanks.  ~Helena.


1. Country 2. Year the commn started work
 3. Period covered
 4. Report published by government?

Not finished work by Feb. '05

5. Estab'd nationally or otherwise?
 6. Estab'd after some democratizn?
(/ Did democrtn follow?)
 7. Estab'd as explicit part of  conflict termination? (Did successful peacebldg follow?)
Uganda
 1974
 1971-74
 Yes, 1975
 National
 No / No
 No / No
Bolivia
 1982
 1967-82
 No (commn disbanded)
 National
 Yes
Argentina
 1983
 1976-83
 Yes, 1985
 National
 Yes
Uruguay
 1985
 1973-82
 Yes, 1985
 National
 Yes
Zimbabwe
 1985
 1983
 No (report kept confidential)
 National
 No
Philippines
 1986
 1972-86
 No
 National
 Yes
Uganda
 1986
 1962-86
 Yes, 1995
 National
 No
Nepal
 1986
 1962-86
 Yes, 1994
 National
 Yes (modest)
Chile
 1990
 1973-90
 Yes, 1991
 National
 Yes
Chad
 1991
 1982-90
 Yes, 1992
 National
 No
Germany (for East  Germany)
 1992
 1949-89
 Yes, 1994
 National
 Yes
El Salvador
 1992
 1980-91
 Yes, 1993
 Establishment  mandated by UN-brokered peace accord
 No / Yes, modest
 Yes / Yes
Sri Lanka
 1994
 1988-94
 Yes, 1997
 National
 No
Haiti
 1995
 1991-94
 Yes, 1996
 National
 Yes (modest, and not sustained)
Burundi
 1995
 1993-95
 Yes, 1996
 U.N. Security Council formed and ran it
 No / No
 Yes / Not really
South Africa
 1995
 1960-94
 Yes, 1998
 National
 Yes / Yes
 Yes / Yes
Ecuador
 1996
 1979-96
 No (commn disbanded)
 National
 No
Guatemala
 1997
 1962-96
 Yes, 1999
 Establishment  mandated by UN-brokered peace accord
 No / No
 Yes / Yes
Nigeria
 1999
 1966-99
 No (but civil-society groups released the seven-volume text in Jan. '05)
 National
 Yes
Panama
 2001
 1968-89
 Yes, 2002
 National
 Yes, 10 years after cataclysmic democratization event
Peru
 2001
 1980-2000
 Yes, 2003
 National
 Yes
 Yes
Serbia & Montenegro
 2001
 1991-2001
 No (commn disbanded when office of federal president was abolished)
 National, but responding to a lot of western pressure
 Yes
Ghana (National Reconciliation Commission)
 2002
 1957-93
 Report presented to president, Oct. 2004.  Not published.
 National
 Yes, but slow
The above 23 commissions had apparently completed their work by February 2005.  Of them, 3 were disbanded before they finished their work, and 4 apparently finished their work and presented reports to the government which then did not allow their publication (though in Nigeria, civil-society groups released what they claimed was the text.) 16 commissions had presented their reports and seen the reports made public by the commissioning authorities.

The commissions that follow had not completed their work by February 2005.
Sierra Leone
 2000
 1991-99
 Started public hearings, April '03
 Establishment  mandated by UN-brokered peace accord
 Yes (but very modest)
 Yes
East Timor
 2001
 1974-99
 Report promised July '05
 Establishment  mandated by UN transitional administration
 Yes, including also decolonization
 Yes
Liberia
 2003
 ?
 (Not started work, Feb '05)
 Establishment  mandated by UN-brokered peace accord
 No
 Yes
Paraguay
 2003
 1954-89
 Commn estabd Sept. '04
 National
 No
Morocco
 2004
 pre-1999 (?)
 Report scheduled for April '05
 National
 No







By region (N = 28)
 # of commissions
 Chronological trends
 # w/ officially published report, as propn of those that finished work (by Feb 05)



Africa
 10
 spread throughout 3-decade period
 5 / 8


Latin America
 10
 cluster in early 80s, then spread thru'out period
 7 / 9


Asia
 4
 two in 80s
 2 / 3


Europe
 2
1 / 2


(Morocco)
 1
(not finished)


(Haiti)
 1
1 / 1


Of the above 28 commissions, one was established and run by the UN Security Council; five had their establishment mandated by a UN-brokered peace accord, and 22 were established by national authorities.