Colombia as the 'Laboratory' for Transitional Justice: Consolidation and Innovation of Global Formulas

Abstract

This article examines the standardization of transitional justice, using Colombia - regarded by international observers as a contemporary laboratory - as a case. It investigates the extent to which transitional justice, as a global blueprint for addressing past atrocities, is being embraced in Colombia and how Colombian experiences contribute to both innovation and advancement of transitional justice internationally. Colombia offers a unique perspective on how transitional justice experts and institutions engage in and construct national, regional and international networks experimentally, under the guidance of international lab certifiers and informal standardizers. Drawing on a study focused on the justice pillar of transitional justice, the article argues that the significant level of local agency, coupled with international recognition and involvement, has contributed to strengthening, rather than weakening, the international transitional justice standard through innovation and localization.