January 22, 2026: The Zoryan Institute is pleased to announce the publication of a new article on its academic blog, Scholar’s Corner: “Breaking Cycles of Impunity: The Right to Truth as a Legal Tool to Confront Mass Atrocities,” by Argentine human rights lawyer and legal scholar Carlos Federico Gaitán Hairabedian.
In this article, Gaitán Hairabedian explores the “right to truth”: the idea that victims, their families, and society have a legal right to know what happened in cases of mass violence and serious human rights abuses. Drawing on Argentina’s experience confronting the legacy of its military dictatorship, the article focuses on the Hairabedian Armenian Genocide Truth Trial before the Argentine federal courts. Through this case, the author shows how courts can play a crucial role in establishing historical facts and challenging denial through judicial processes. The article presents the right to truth not only as a way to address past atrocities, but also as a forward-looking legal tool that can help prevent future violence at a time when denial and weakened accountability mechanisms threaten global human rights protections.
Carlos Federico Gaitán Hairabedian has a long-standing relationship with the Zoryan Institute. He is a graduate of the Institute’s Genocide and Human Rights University Program, one of the first to attend from Latin America, which he attended in 2005. Through the Luisa Hairabedian Foundation, he has expedited over 25 graduates from across Latin America to study in the program in Toronto. The Luisa Hairabedian Foundation is a Latin American human rights organization which draws from the experiences of the Armenian Genocide through memory, truth and justice to raise public awareness about serious violations of human rights and the importance of education in preventing further genocides. Gaitán Hairabedian currently serves as a member of the Institute’s Corporate Board of Directors.
To read the full article, please visit Scholar’s Corner by clicking here.
If you are or someone you know may be interested in submitting a piece to Scholar’s Corner, please visit: https://zoryaninstitute.org/contribute-to-scholars-corner/.
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About the Author:
Carlos Federico Gaitán Hairabedian is an Argentine human rights lawyer and S.J.D. candidate at American University Washington College of Law, where he works under the supervision of Professor Juan E. Méndez. His research focuses on transitional justice, the right to truth, prevention of genocide, enforced disappearances, and the prosecution of crimes against humanity, with particular emphasis on Argentina’s post-dictatorship experience and its interaction with international human rights law. He has litigated and worked on landmark cases in Argentina, including the ESMA Megatrial and the Armenian Genocide Truth Trial, and currently collaborates with academic and civil society institutions on genocide prevention and accountability initiatives.
