8. Recommendations The participants suggested the following recommendations during discussions: ? The participants noted the need for a formal and comprehensive process of national healing, reconciliation and transitional justice to begin in Zimbabwe. ? They suggested that for transitional justice to be effective the local communities needed to be involved and take ownership of the process. ? Decentralization and restructuring of judicial processes in the event of massive prosecutions of many offenders was also recommended. ? The participants noted the capacity of the Zimbabwe judicial system and its past record in dealing with political cases as needing innovative and immediate reforms and decentralization, particularly of the court system in order to deal expeditiously and conclusively with cases of violence. ? The participants noted the challenges, which the victims and witnesses faced such as the long distances to the courts and the resistance by some perpetrators to stand before the courts and traditional leaders. The participants suggested the need for victim friendly processes that would also be accessible. ? It was also recommended that women and men of integrity constitute any body that might be created to deal with transitional justice issues such as truth seeking or prosecutions, on an equal basis to ensure that interests of both sexes are equally and fairly heard. ? The participants also voiced concerns on the involvement of actors in the former regime in any bodies that might be created and recommended victim-centered processes more than anything else. 31