This report was first published on the occasion of a Public Hearing on Impunity organised by the European Parliament’s Sub Committee on Human Rights (Committee on Foreign Affairs, Security and Defence Policy) on 30-31 October 1996. In this report, Amnesty International highlights the many factors which contribute to the continuing phenomenon of impunity in the region; the lack of thorough investigations into allegations of human rights violations; the importance of bringing the perpetrators to justice; and the passing of amnesty laws which prevent prosecutions and trial, or close investigations and further undermine the search for truth and justice.
