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Faculty Research Forum highlights power of civil society in transitional justice
“The power of human rights resides with the seemingly ceaseless activism of civil society organizations, and indeed ordinary people like you and me, who mobilize for change," Kelebogile Zvobgo, Mansfield Associate Professor of Government, said at the third Faculty Research Forum.
During her talk on March 17, Zvobgo highlighted transitional justice, a set of tools governments use to address human rights violations. Zvobgo’s presentation covered the research featured in her new Oxford University Press book, “Governing Truth: NGOs and the Politics of Transitional Justice.” Zvobgo is the founder and director of the International Justice Lab and a faculty affiliate at Â鶹Æƽâ°æ’s Global Research Institute.
Sponsored by the College of Arts & Sciences, the new faculty speaker series was launched in the fall to highlight faculty scholarship across disciplines.
“The idea is to feature the really cutting-edge and fascinating work happening across Arts & Sciences," said Audrey Horning, vice dean for research and graduate studies in the College of Arts & Sciences.
Horning noted how valuable it is for students to see their professors outside of the classroom actively engaging in the research that shapes their teaching and mentorship, reflecting on Zvobgo’s work specifically.
“Personally, I find her work fascinating, especially the interplay with the public and policy. This is research with wider societal impact and purpose, and I think that characterizes a lot of the work across the College,” Horning said. 
Three pillars ground Zvobgo’s scholarship: human rights, transitional justice, and international law and courts. The cover of her book — which was designed by W&M alumnus Barry O’Keefe ’10 — is inspired by another set of pillars, the caryatids of the Erechtheion, the Temple of Athena Polias (Athena the Protector), at the Acropolis of Athens.
The conventional wisdom in transitional justice scholarship is that governments are the driving forces when it comes to transitional justice. But Zvobgo disagrees; as articulated in her book and presentation, civil society groups, both domestic and international, are the drivers of transitional justice. “Whatever we get [in justice], as much or as little as we get, is because of civil society,” Zvobgo said.
The global transitional justice network, a partnership of civil society organizations, helps explain similar outcomes across the globe, according to Zvobgo. It’s a matter of local and global. Domestic groups are on the frontlines to intervene and apply pressure from below the state, while international groups follow in action and apply pressure from above the state.
Zvobgo points to Guatemala as a powerful example of civil society’s role in advancing accountability. She highlights the Grupo de Apoyo Mutuo (GAM), a grassroots organization that mobilized citizens to demand justice. Through public protest and sustained pressure, groups like GAM were instrumental in the creation of a truth commission, with their actions contributing to broader global debates on transitional justice.
Extending this argument, Zvobgo also discussed how non-governmental organizations shape the transitional justice implementation process, citing the 2016 Sepur Zarco case in Guatemala as an example. This landmark domestic case — the first to recognize sexual slavery as a crime against humanity — illustrates the critical role that NGOs such as CONAVIGUA (National Coordination of Widows of Guatemala) play not only in advocating for accountability but also in ensuring that justice processes address historically marginalized victims.
The research for Zvobgo’s book included meeting with officials like the Chief Prosecutor for Human Rights in Guatemala as well as the Head of the Programa de Acompañamiento a la Justicia de Transición, a United Nations Development Programme initiative that supported transitional justice efforts in Guatemala.
To Zvobgo, academic scholarship can be a powerful tool to help shape public policy debates, through the dissemination of new knowledge and research findings among the public and policy officials.
Brian Castleberry, director of the Creative Writing Program and associate professor of English, will lead the next Faculty Research Forum on April 21.