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In parallel with the exhibition Hrant Dink: Here and Now which opened in Yerevan on May 7, 2022, the Hrant Dink Foundation, in partnership with Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Armenia, organized a discussion with Justice Albie Sachs, moderated by Lara Setrakian. As part of the series of side events of the exhibition, the discussion titled "Harnessing the power of soft vengeance" was a celebration of the efforts of those who work for justice, peace, democracy, equality and freedom despite challenges and obstacles. It provided an opportunity to hear a first hand account of the aspirational life and struggle of Albie Sachs at the venue where the struggle and story of Hrant Dink was being exhibited.
Together, Lara Setrakian and Albie Sachs explored the concept of soft-vengeance, addressed the struggle for freedom, the role that sites of memory play on dealing with the past and on fostering coexistence, the significance of having a democratic constitution that upholds equality and freedoms while also talking about harnessing past experiences as a tool to generate action. Albie Sachs shared his personal story which led to the introduction of the concept of soft vengeance. He also touched upon the process of writing the new constitution of the Republic of South Africa and how the Old Fort prison in Johannesburg was transformed into the Constitutional Court.
During the Q&A session following the discussion, the guests raised questions on issues ranging from the achievements of constitutional justice in South Africa to the role soft vengeance can play in reaching closure after traumatic events. The event provided an opportunity for the participants in Armenia to witness how democracy and human rights can be upheld.
Justice Albie Sachs
Justice Albie Sachs is a retired South African activist, lawyer, writer and one of 11 judges appointed by Nelson Mandela to serve on the first Constitutional Court of South Africa. He was imprisoned to solitary confinement for his actions as a lawyer and his anti-apartheid activities and was forced into exile. On April 7, 1988 he was the subject of an assasination attempt but miraculously he survived and recovered after a long year of rehabilitation in England. After this incident he introduced the concept of ‘soft vengeance’ which upholds the notion that rather than perpetuate a cycle of violence, one should enable those who perpetrate violence to understand and publicly acknowledge the great harm they cause, thereby advancing reconstruction for the nation, for the victims, and even for the perpetrators. For Albie Sachs, soft vengeance was the establishment of the rule of law, equality, justice, freedom and democracy in South Africa. |
Lara Setrakian
Lara Setrakian is the Co-Founder of News Deeply, now in collaboration with The New Humanitarian. She also serves as an Impact Partner with Fresco Capital, a global venture capital fund based in Singapore. Lara spent five years as a foreign correspondent covering the Middle East for ABC News and Bloomberg Television. She has since focused on the fusion of news and technology, building in-depth content hubs on the world’s most important issues. Her first platform, Syria Deeply, produced award-winning coverage of the Syrian civil war. Ebola Deeply launched soon after, followed by Water Deeply, Refugees Deeply, Oceans Deeply, Malnutrition Deeply and other platforms. Inc Magazine dubbed her one of the “Women Who Could Own the Future,” while Fast Company named her one of its “100 Most Creative People in Business.” |
This event was realized in partnership with the Friedrich Naumann Foundation for Freedom Armenia and with the support of the Chrest Foundation.
