A United Nations human rights team in Bogoro, Democratic Republic of the Congo, investigates
crimes committed against civilians. Pictured here is a witness showing the skull of an alleged victim.
UN Photo / Martine Perret
from this point forward. Conversely, an individual publicly identified might consider
that she/he has nothing more to lose.
These factors notwithstanding, in very exceptional circumstances, and subject to
the possibility to afford individuals an opportunity to provide their version of the
events,144 an investigative body might opt to reveal names publicly if it finds one or
more of the following considerations particularly compelling:
General
• The interests of transparency, as full information is shared with everyone,
not just a select few;
• Public revelation may have a greater deterrent effect, and/or may serve to
marginalize, politically or otherwise, those identified as responsible;
If the name of the individual is already in the public domain or the person has already been convicted of
conduct similar to that found during the investigation, then this issue is clearly less relevant.
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