Professor Pablo de Greiff warned of the underlying challenges facing many truth commissions which include an expansion of mandates, rushed set-up processes that undermine credibility and a lack of follow-up of recommendations. He advised that it is a mistake to establish transitional mechanisms until conditions are right. He also emphasised the importance of the work of civil society as partners for any official process since truth commissions do not start work from scratch but benefit from the background work done by CSOs. His presentation highlighted the following themes: ► The importance of parallel civil society processes to ensure that the government is pressured to institutionalise transitional justice ► The need to take into account the timing and conditions for a successful process. ► The importance of victim-centered TJ processes ► The importance of holistic and comprehensive TJ processes ► The necessity of political will to implement recommendations D. Professor Elizabeth Olgesby: Truth Recovery and Strategic Choices in Design Professor Oglesby's presentation highlighted three periods of tension for most truth commissions. These include: the creation of the commission and definition of its mandate; the functions of a commission and whether it will focus on juridical human rights violations or a broader historical context; and the aftermath of the commission and how its report will be disseminated and interpreted, especially in schools. She emphasised that a truth commission should ultimately open up debates over the past. She further emphasised the importance of not limiting the truth recovery process to legal personnel but including historians and social scientists who can provide a contextualised analysis and can enhance recommendations for addressing underlying causes of violence. Important themes that came out of her presentation included ► The challenges in the nature of truth to be pursued whether it should be forensic truth versus historical truth. ► The potential of the truth commissions to document alternative histories ► The recognition of the complexity of victims' identities and agency ► The need for access to archives as an important source of records. 8 The Second International Conference on Transitional Justice in Zimbabwe