The Tribunal’s Outreach Programme is at the heart of the institution’s relationship with the region of the former Yugoslavia. In the remaining years of the ICTY’s mandate, this relationship will become more important than ever.
The establishment of Outreach in 1999, six years into the ICTY’s existence, was a milestone in the Tribunal’s progression to maturity. It was a sign that the court had become deeply aware that its work would resonate far beyond the judicial mandate of deciding the guilt or innocence of individual accused. With the establishment of Outreach, the Tribunal recognised that it had a role to play in the process of dealing with the past in the former Yugoslavia, one of the key challenges for societies emerging from conflict.