Michael Ignatieff Quotes

I cannot flinch from saying such things in public. As a Representative of the People I am duty bound to do so. Justice cries out to me not to dissemble.

The second one, the joint Truth and Friendship Commission, which we started now with Indonesia, that is the one that has been criticized; its terms of reference call for providing amnesty for those who cooperate in telling the truth. It does not lead to prosecution.

In 1994, when I went back to Haiti from exile, we established a Commission for Truth and Justice and Reconciliation. I passed the documents to the next government, and I never heard about it again.

Cover-ups don’t work.

He [William Clinton] has terrible trouble with the truth. I don’t think Presidents should have trouble with the truth.

We have to support truth and reconciliation and some form of justice.

A lie should be tried in a place where it will attract the attention of the world.

He who does not bellow the truth when he knows the truth makes himself the accomplice of liars and forgers.

Hide nothing, for time, which sees all and hears all, exposes all.

Any politician or campaigner trying to pull the wool over the eyes of the public won't get very far.

Justice will overtake fabricators of lies and false witnesses.

The first step is that the Cambodian government has expressed sincerity to apologize for what happened.

In the name of justice there cannot be subjection and in the name of peace there cannot be impunity.

People like to say that the conflict is between good and evil. The real conflict is between truth and lies.

Reconciliation should be accompanied by justice, otherwise it will not last. While we all hope for peace it shouldn't be peace at any cost but peace based on principle, on justice.

One tells as few lies as possible only by telling as few lies as possible, and not by having the least possible opportunity to do so.

Time will inevitably uncover dishonesty and lies; history has no place for them.

I've tried to do away with lying in my life in the last few years, but it's hard.

I don't think Bosnia is ready for reconciliation, but I do think it is ready for truth.

There really can be no peace without justice. There can be no justice without truth. And there can be no truth, unless someone rises up to tell you the truth.

We talk about honesty, but the reality is we have lots of human values, and they are not all compatible. We don't always tell the truth about everything, no matter what the consequences.

As I've said, I've been advised not to get into the specifics out there. Is there some truth out there? Yes. Is there a lot of falsehood out there? Absolutely.

I would say as a journalist, I would envision travelling to other countries that have had to reckon with their past and see how they've done it: what worked, what didn't work, finding characters that would tell the story of how that process was done.

Hide nothing. It always gets found out.

The truth won't stay hidden and will come out.