In September 2025, the Transitional Justice Consortium Ethiopia (TJC-E), through the Horn Center for Democracy (HCD), conducted two grassroots training and consultation events in Mekelle, Tigray (18 September) and Aba’ala, Afar (7 September). The sessions are aimed at advancing a victims-centered approach to Ethiopia’s Transitional Justice (TJ) process. HCD implemented the activities in collaboration with regional civil society partners, including the Alliance of Civil Society Organizations of Tigray (ACSOT), the Tigray Association of Victims of War (TAVW), and the Afar War Victims Relief Society.

Across the two locations, a total of 115 participants; the majority women; came together, representing war victims, internally displaced persons (IDPs), victims’ associations, community leaders, and civil society organizations. Conducted in local languages (Tigrigna and Afar af), the sessions created safe and inclusive spaces for learning, dialogue, and collective reflection.

The consultations focused on strengthening victims’ understanding of transitional justice principles, including truth, accountability, reparations, and guarantees of non-recurrence, while emphasizing the importance of informed and meaningful victim participation. Through interactive presentations, group discussions, and plenary exchanges, participants connected global and national TJ frameworks with their lived experiences of conflict, loss, and displacement.

A key outcome of both events was formation of Victims’ Advisory Groups in Tigray and Afar. These groups; gender-balanced and representative of diverse ages and experiences; are intended to serve as bridges between victims, victims’ associations, and national transitional justice stakeholders, ensuring that victims’ perspectives inform policy and implementation.

Participants in both regions consistently highlighted shared priorities: the urgent need for truth-telling and recognition of suffering, inclusion of women and marginalized groups, psychosocial and legal support for survivors, and sustained capacity building for victims and their associations. Many emphasized that this was their first opportunity to engage in structured discussions on transitional justice and expressed renewed hope that justice processes can be shaped by those most affected.

HCD and its partners reaffirmed their commitment to continued grassroots engagement, follow-up trainings, and advocacy to ensure that Ethiopia’s transitional justice process is inclusive, victim-led, and grounded in local realities.