Peer-reviewed article
Sexual Violence Against Children and Transitional Justice: Bearing Witness and Preserving Testimony About Injustice in Childhood
Sabine Andresen ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This article examines how transitional justice mechanisms can address sexual violence against children and adolescents, using the example of Germany's Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse. It argues that bearing witness to childhood sexual abuse requires a framework sensitive to children's developmental stages and their unique social contexts, including family, education, and legal systems. The article proposes that effective justice processes must view children both as human beings and specifically as children with particular needs and vulnerabilities.
Key points
- Transitional justice mechanisms can be applied to address sexual violence against children
- Survivors' testimony about childhood sexual abuse requires approaches sensitive to child development and adolescence as unique life phases
- Family, educational institutions, and legal systems are contextual factors that must be considered when addressing child sexual abuse
- The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Germany provides a practical example of transitional justice applied to childhood sexual violence
- A childhood-theory-informed framework is necessary for justice processes involving child survivors
Limitations
This article is primarily theoretical and does not evaluate the effectiveness or outcomes of transitional justice interventions for child sexual abuse survivors. It cannot tell us about the actual impacts of inquiry mechanisms on survivors' healing, justice satisfaction, or long-term well-being.
Abstract
Abstract Efforts to come to terms with sexual violence against children and adolescents are predicated on a desire to achieve justice. Based on the work done by the Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Germany, this article attempts to identify the interfaces between the Inquiry’s undertakings and the field of transitional justice. Using an approach informed by the theory of childhood, it examines the issues that arise when survivors bear witness to past childhood events. This must adopt a perspective that is sensitive to childhood and adolescence as unique life phases. That, in turn, requires accounting for concomitant factors, such as the context presented by a child’s growth and development, the function of families, the role played by educational institutions, and the legal position accorded children by society. The article thus adopts a framework rooted in childhood theory that considers children both generally as human beings and specifically as children.