UN Expert Urges Human Rights Oversight of Tech Companies in Transitional Justice Settings

GENEVA — A United Nations expert called on world leaders to implement rights-based regulation for technology companies operating in transitional settings, while presenting a report to the UN General Assembly on the impact of emerging technologies on transitional justice.

Bernard Duhaime, the UN Special Rapporteur on truth, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-recurrence, warned of systemic risks and challenges associated with deploying technologies, including artificial intelligence, in transitional contexts. He noted that while innovative tools have supported justice processes, their use in environments marked by volatility, trauma, weak institutions, and polarization carries inherent limitations and risks.

According to Duhaime, technologies have provided positive support to transitional justice through open-source investigation tools, biometrics, forensics, large language models for detecting patterns of abuse, and encryption for witness protection. However, he warned that algorithmic amplification of hate speech, online surveillance, disinformation, and digital literacy disparities can generate risks of human rights violations and recurrence of conflict.

Duhaime emphasized that technology cannot replace fundamentally human processes such as post-conflict reconciliation, trauma healing, and rebuilding trust in institutions. He stated that new technologies should serve as tools for victims and practitioners rather than self-standing solutions.

The Special Rapporteur called on states to hold companies accountable to human rights standards, train legal professionals in handling digital evidence, expand digital literacy programs, and adopt strong data protection laws.

Additionally, Duhaime urged technology companies to classify transitional settings as high-risk environments requiring heightened due diligence. He recommended that companies establish transparent policies for storing data that could serve as evidence of international crimes, provide redress mechanisms for rights violations, and consult affected communities during product development and deployment.

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