A/HRC/33/63 IV. Transitional justice and mechanism to combat impunity 89. The population continues to express frustration and fear because of the impunity of the perpetrators of serious human rights violations. During meetings with the Independent Expert, civil society representatives reaffirmed the need for constitutional and democratic change to be mirrored by effective efforts to combat impunity, together with the application of, and respect for, the law. However, to date the main commanders of armed groups have gone unchallenged. 90. From 2 to 4 September 2015, the Independent Expert participated in an international seminar on efforts to combat impunity organized by MINUSCA and the Office of the High Commissioner, in collaboration with the Ministries of Justice and National Reconciliation. The seminar was part of the natural follow-up to the recommendations of the Bangui Forum, and aimed to support efforts to combat impunity, to assess the status of judicial and non-judicial responses in the wake of the crisis, and to draft a set of proposals intended as inputs for an overall national strategy to combat impunity. The Independent Expert invites the Human Rights Division to widely disseminate the conclusions and recommendations of the report. 91. In May 2016, the Division and the Office of the High Commissioner launched a project to compile an inventory of the main human rights violations committed in the Central African Republic since 2003. By the end of the year, the project team should have prepared a report that will suggest priority lines of inquiry for the future Special Criminal Court, along with information that will allow the judicial authorities to identify alleged perpetrators of serious violations and to develop a prosecution strategy. The report will also contain guidance for the creation of mechanisms to establish the truth, grant reparations, and offer guarantees of non-repetition. A. Special Criminal Court 92. The new administration has reiterated its desire to establish the Special Criminal Court, notwithstanding the delay in setting it up. Significant progress has been achieved in appointing the selection committee for national magistrates and in approving the operating budget for the first 18 months, while declarations of interest have been received from several States with regard to the appointment of international magistrates. A joint project by United Nations bodies to support the Special Criminal Court is now being finalized. However, funding for the Court to operate for five years, the recruitment of magistrates, security, the availability of well-trained Central African lawyers and victim and witness protection all present sizeable challenges for the Government in the coming months. 93. Since the Special Criminal Court will complement the ordinary judicial system, synergy should be developed to enable the work of the Court to contribute to building the capacities of the domestic court system. 94. The Independent Expert encourages the national authorities to speed up efforts to operationalize the Special Criminal Court by the end of the year. To that end, the negotiations over the United Nations support project document should be brought to a swift conclusion, in order to proceed with the recruitment of personnel. B. Non-judicial mechanisms and reconciliation 95. Several initiatives have been taken with a view to reducing intercommunity violence and moving towards reconciliation, but these remain insufficient. GE.16-12727 15