Preserving and enhancing the archives of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal is an essential part of the Tribunal’s and the Fondazione Lelio e Lisli Basso’s commitment to protecting the memory of struggles for peoples’ rights. Making the documentation produced during the Tribunal’s sessions accessible preserves indispensable sources for the future of peoples’ rights and provides scholars, social organisations and future generations with a unique documentary heritage to understand the evolution of practices for the protection of collective rights, claims for self-determination and forms of resistance to human rights violations.
The Truth and Justice in the Struggle for Rights in Latin America project, promoted by the Associazione Amici della Fondazione Basso and made possible thanks to the Otto per Mille of the Tavola Valdese initiative, fits into this perspective. The project involved the archival reorganisation, digitisation and enhancement of documentation relating to four sessions of the Tribunal: Guatemala (1983), Nicaragua (1984), Puerto Rico (1989), and The Conquest of America and International Law (1992).
The documentation held in the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal’s Fund restates the Tribunal’s work in ascertaining violations of peoples’ rights, and documents the contributions of social movements, civil society organisations, local communities, scholars, and experts in reconstructing and interpreting the facts. These reports, testimonies, analyses and Judgements constitute a valuable documentary heritage for understanding the events that swept through Latin America in the second half of the 20th century, as well as the Tribunal’s role in supporting demands for truth and justice from peoples around the world.
Noteworthy is the documentation relating to Central America, where the PPT closely followed developments in the conflicts in Guatemala and Nicaragua in the 1980s. Also notable is the documentation dedicated to Puerto Rico and the session The Conquest of America and International Law, which expands upon the relationship between colonialism, the rights of peoples, and international law. The project has been enriched by the creation of three interviews that provide context for the documentation being reorganised and digitised. Gianni Tognoni, Secretary General of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, discusses the importance of the session dedicated to The Conquest of America and International Law and its contribution to the Tribunal’s reflections on the rights of peoples. Luigi Ferrajoli, Professor Emeritus of Philosophy of Law at Università degli Studi Roma Tre and a member of the PPT, discusses the conquest of America and its ongoing impact on contemporary international law. Laura Fotia, professor of American History and Institutions at Università degli Studi Roma Tre, reconstructs the historical context of Central America in the 1980s with particular reference to Guatemala.
The initiative is part of the development of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal Fund launched by Fondazione Lelio e Lisli Basso, continuing the interventions implemented in recent years thanks to the support of Chiesa Valdese and the reorganization and digitalization work begun in 2013 with the project dedicated to the Russell II Tribunal Fund and some of the first sessions of the PPT.
Each reorganization and digitization intervention expands the possibilities of access to a documentary heritage constructed during the Tribunal’s activities and helps preserve a memory that continues to question the present. Making these sources available means offering new tools for research and knowledge, but also keeping alive the dialogue with the experiences, testimonies, and questions of justice that have spanned the history of many peoples globally.
To learn more:
Final project report: Italian, English and Spanish.
Inventory of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal Fund.
Interview with Gianni Tognoni.
Interview with Luigi Ferrajoli
Interview with Laura Fotia
Working Group:
Simona Luciani (Head of the Historical Archives of Fondazione Lelio e Lisli Basso) coordinated the archival work of reorganising, inventorying and digitising the materials from the sessions covered by the initiative.
Erika Vettone, archivist, collaborated on the archival work of reorganising, inventorying and digitising the materials from the sessions covered by the initiative.
Simona Fraudatario, coordinator and researcher of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, oversaw the scientific review of the reorganised and digitised documentation, as well as the interviews with experts and witnesses. She also oversaw the drafting of the final report and its translation into Spanish.
Marta Fraticelli, assistant to the General Secretariat Office of the Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal, assisted with reading materials related to the session The Conquest of America and International Law, as well as with editing the interviews conducted as part of the project. She also translated the final report into English.
The project was made possible thanks to the collaboration of the Project Office of Fondaizone Lelio e Lisli Basso
