Within and Beyond Transitional Justice Shadows: Rallying Social Movements, Re-sculpting Agendas, Re-centring Historical Injustices

How do processes of contestation and resistance, emerging from the constellation of actors, impact the transitional justice landscape? This article critically explores the dynamic interplay between transitional justice and social movements within the context of continuing historical colonial injustices. Through this critical lens, it seeks to draw attention to both the potential of social movements to poke and push the conventional boundaries of transitional justice, as these movements are not mere bystanders but rather active agents who constantly ‘court’ with transitional justice via purposeful approaches aiming to reshape its contours and challenge its traditional, rigid edges. This article, therefore, argues that social movements play a pivotal role in re-sculpting the transitional justice landscape by amplifying the voices of the marginalised communities and challenging extant hegemonic narratives. By doing so, courting transitional justice through the social movements’ evolving and disruptive vehicles allows for a re-imagination of a more inclusive and nuanced understanding of justice that resonates with the changing needs and values of those re-voiced protagonists and deeply affected societies.