‘Si no hay datos, no hay abuso’: LGBTIQ+ inclusion and agency in truth commissions

Abstract In recent years, the study and practice of transitional justice have shown increasing interest in LGBTIQ+ voices and experiences. Scholars highlight the importance of such participation, both for the recognition and protection of a significantly marginalized group in the aftermath of conflict and atrocity, and for challenging broader conceptualizations of justice and human rights. This article explores LGBTIQ+ participation in truth commissions as a means through which sexual and gender minorities gain recognition and counter the institutional politics of not-knowing that renders their experiences invisible. It presents an Index of LGBTIQ+ Inclusion and Agency, which offers a policy tool for understanding the current state of LGBTIQ+ representation in truth commissions. This index is explored through reference to the seven truth commissions that have included LGBTIQ+ voices to date. This article adds to the methodological toolbox for queering transitional justice by means of which we can identify future avenues of research and develop more inclusive policies of transitional justice for the participation of marginalized groups.