Borno peace building: Allamin foundation trains govt officials on transitional justice
By SADIQ ABUBAKAR, Maiduguri –
The Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development has organized a one-day training workshop on Transitional Justice for government officials in Borno State. The workshop, held at the Musa Usman Ministry of Finance Conference Hall in Maiduguri, aimed to create awareness and understanding of Transitional Justice and its role in the context of Borno State.
The Executive Director of the foundation, Hajiya Hamsatu Allamin, explained that the workshop aimed to identify current government initiatives and programs aligned with Transitional Justice in Borno State.
She also emphasized the importance of gathering responses, comments, and suggestions from participants to inform a way forward in the peacebuilding process.
The Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant of Allamin Foundation, Dr. Lawan Balami, introduced the workshop and highlighted the expected feedbacks and outcomes. He noted that the feedbacks, presentations, and recommendations would be compiled into a Policy Dialogue document.
The Vice Chancellor of Borno State University (BOSU) and facilitator of the workshop, Professor Haruna Dlakwa, delivered a paper titled “Understanding Transitional Justice and Reconciliation: The Role of Government Representatives in MDAs Officials in Borno State on Transformative/Transitional Justice.”
He emphasized the crucial role of MDAs in the application of Transitional Justice in Borno State, particularly in the post-Boko Haram/ISWAP violent conflict era.
Professor Dlakwa highlighted various roles that MDAs can play, including public enlightenment, designing and implementing specific projects, providing shelter and essential social services, adjudicating cases involving violent extremists, and offering psycho-social counseling to repentant insurgents and victims of violent extremism. He also stressed the importance of balancing restorative justice with retributive justice to ensure proper reparation for victims and appropriate punishment for violent extremists.
The workshop emphasized the need for proper coordination and management of programs aimed at demilitarization, de-radicalization, dissociation, rehabilitation, resettlement, and reintegration of perpetrators and victims of violent extremism. The importance of Mechanisms for ensuring Transitional Justice, such as Truth and Reconciliation Tribunals, was also discussed.
The Allamin Foundation’s initiative aims to promote peace and reconciliation among the population, especially victims of the 15-year conflict that ravaged Borno State and other parts of the North East. The foundation seeks to compile and present recommendations to the state government for support and implementation towards promoting peace and reconciliation.