Episode 19 - Queering Internal Family Systems (IFS) - Transitional Justice and Global Voices

IFS and Transitional Justice in Syria

This episode is unlike any other in the Queering IFS series. Jude and Alessio are joined by Hane Alrustm, a Syrian-Lebanese psychoanalyst, theatre practitioner, and founder of Healing on the Move, currently living in Belgium as a refugee. Hane speaks from profound personal experience: the kidnapping of his father by the Syrian government in 2010, the disappearance and death of 10 to 15 family members over the years that followed, and his own exile through Lebanon to Belgium, a country chosen for him by the United Nations.

The conversation centres on transitional justice: what it means for a society emerging from large-scale human rights violations to acknowledge what happened, hold perpetrators accountable, and find a path forward. Hane draws direct parallels with IFS, asking what the model can offer at a collective level when individual therapy is simply not available to 25 million people. The language of IFS, exiles, managers, firefighters, parts and self, maps with striking clarity onto the dynamics of a nation trying to transition without first doing the witnessing.

They explore the particular grief of ambiguous loss, families unable to mourn without a body, legal systems that leave the missing suspended in limbo, and the question of how to hold perpetrators humanly without excusing what they did. Hane also names the urgency of inclusion: queer people, women, and those on the margins being left out of Syria's current transition is not just an injustice, it is a structural failure in the healing process itself.

00:00 Introductions
07:00 Hane's personal history and encounter with injustice
14:00 The Syrian Revolution and its global impact
30:00 What is transitional justice?
33:00 IFS language and collective exile
37:00 Ambiguous loss and the families of the disappeared
44:00 Accountability without demonising
47:00 Including all voices in the transition
50:00 The Tadamun massacre and layers of hurt
54:00 What IFS can offer at a collective level

Healing on the Move
Hane's network of mental health professionals offering companionship to people on the move: healingonthemove.com / Instagram: @healingonthemove

Disclaimer
This podcast is hosted by qualified therapists who share personal reflections and professional insights into therapy and mental health. The views expressed are those of the individual speakers or guests and are personal to them.

While we talk about therapy, this podcast is not therapy. It's for information, reflection, and conversation only, and should never be considered a substitute for professional mental health support, diagnosis, or treatment. Listening to this podcast does not create a therapist-client relationship.

Some episodes may touch on sensitive topics, so please take care while listening. If you're struggling, we encourage you to reach out to a qualified therapist or mental health professional in your area.

Guest opinions are their own and don't necessarily reflect those of the hosts.

Contacts
Alessio Rizzo (He/They) is a Certified IFS psychotherapist, IFS Trainer with the IFS Institute, and Approved Clinical Consultant (ACC) — www.therapywithalessio.com

Jude Carn (She/They) is a Certified IFS psychotherapist and Approved Clinical Consultant (ACC) — www.anchoredinself.co.uk

Sound editing by Forbes Coleman