This webinar is the last of three public webinars we are hosting in the lead-up to the 2021 Cumberland Lodge Police Conference, ‘Towards Justice: Law Enforcement & Reconciliation’ in June 2021.
It takes the format of a conversation between:
- Dame Vera Baird QC, Victims’ Commissioner, for England and Wales
- Assistant Commissioner Robert Beckley QPM, Overall Command of 'Operation Resolve', the criminal investigation into the deaths of 96 people at the Hillsborough Stadium in Sheffield, England, on 15 April 1989.
Join us on Thursday 25 February 2021, from 11.00am GMT to watch live, with an opportunity to submit questions to our guests during the live Q&A on Zoom.
What will we be discussing?
This webinar examines the role of the victim in investigations of past harms and injustices, and how the voices, or silence, of victims should be acknowledged.
We ask:
- How should we strike the right balance between potentially conflicting sets of rights (for example, the rights of victims to see action taken) versus the rights of potentially frail and elderly witnesses?
- Do people have a right not to be subjected to retroactive legislation on appropriate standards of behaviour?
- How do we assign 'victim' status, during and after a conflict? Who counts as a 'victim'?
- What does Justice look like from a victim's perspective?
- How are victims’ interests mobilised – by individual victims, investigative journalists, pressure groups etc.?
Towards Justice project
Towards Justice: Law Enforcement & Reconciliation is a nine-month project exploring criminal justice approaches to addressing historical wrongs in the UK; in particular, the role of the police in promoting successful and enduring reconciliation and supporting the pursuit of wider social justice.
Key themes and ideas from these webinars and our summer conference will be presented in a summary report, later this year, with recommendations for policymakers and policing and criminal justice practitioners.
Webinar briefing
We have prepared a short, independent briefing document to accompany this webinar and help inform the discussions. The author is our freelance Research Associate, Professor Martina Feilzer.
We encourage registrants to read this briefing on-screen below, or download a copy from the bottom of this webpage to read ahead of the webinar on Thursday 25 February.
On demand
If you miss any of our webinars, or would like to watch or listen to them again, we publish audio and video recordings on the Read, Watch, Listen pages of this website, shortly after each event. The audio versions can also be found on our SoundCloud channel and all the main podcasting platforms if you search for 'Cumberland Lodge'.
Our previous two webinars in this series:
- Responding to Past Harms - Wednesday 27 January 2021
- Insights into Truth & Reconciliation - Wednesday 10 February 2021
Supporting our work
This webinar is free to attend. Like all charities, Cumberland Lodge is facing difficult times during the current pandemic. If you would like to support our work, please consider making a small donation. You can do so online, via our JustGiving page here.
Our stunning facilities in the heart of Windsor Great Park are also available to hire, for conferences, meetings, retreats and special events, or as a film location. Every event booking helps to support our charitable work, promoting progress towards more peaceful, open and inclusive societies.