A public space to debate and discuss how to memorialize past human rights abuse so that it will never again occur.

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Memory and Justice: www.memoryandjustice.org

Discussion of Halabja

In the wake of mass atrocity, reparations for victims don’t necessarily have to be material in order to be effective. Symbolic reparations––including memorials––can go a long way toward giving victims a sense of recognition and redress. But as Lisa Magarrell has noted, reparations “almost always fall short of victims’ expectations.” If reparations are purely symbolic, they are even more likely to lead to resentment. “A symbolic reparations program,” Magarrell writes, “will not be taken seriously by victims if it is not accompanied by at least some concrete material solutions for harm suffered.”

This, perhaps, helps account for the failure of the Halabja memorial. While the memorial was well-built, it was not accompanied by efforts to address the material needs of residents. The city continued to lack basic infrastructure and has no central square or other civic space to speak of. When memorials are well planned, they can serve as valuable civic space for a community. But when the Halabja community’s frustration with government inaction boiled over, residents directed their anger at the only civic space they had—the memorial itself—and destroyed it.

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