repressive regimes from rewriting history and denying the past. They can also help victims obtain closure by knowing the truth about what actually happened (such as to "disappeared" people) and understanding the atrocities they endured. Truth-seeking measures may include freedom of information legislation, declassification of archives, investigations, and truth commissions. Truth commissions Truth commissions are non-judicial commissions of inquiry that aim to discover and reveal past abuses by a government or non-state actors; about forty official truth commissions have been created worldwide. One example is the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in South Africa, which was established to help overcome apartheid and reconcile tensions in the country. Memory and memorials Memorials seek to preserve memories of people or events. In the context of transitional justice, they serve to honor those who died during conflict or other atrocities, examine the past, address contemporary issues and show respect to victims. They can help create records to prevent denial and help societies move forward. Memorials may include commemoration activities, such as architectural memorials, museums, and other commemorative events. One example includes the monuments, annual prayer ceremony, and mass grave in northern Uganda, created in response to the war conducted by and against the Lord's Resistance Army there. Institutional reform Public institutions, including the police, military, and judiciary, often contribute to repression and other human rights violations. When societies undergo a transition, these institutions must be reformed in order to create accountability and prevent the recurrence of abuse. Institutional reform includes the process of restructuring these state actors to ensure that they respect human rights and abide by the rule of law. Reforms can include measures such as vetting, lustration, and Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration (DDR). Vetting is the process of eliminating corrupt or abusive officials from public service employment. For instance, in Afghanistan, election candidates in the 2009 and 2010 elections were vetted. While similar to lustration, "vetting" is the broader category referring to processes aimed at screening and excluding human rights abusers from public institutions while "lustration" refers specifically to the vetting processes and laws that were implemented in the former communist countries in Eastern and Central Europe after the end of the Cold War. Vetting does not necessarily imply dismissals from the state apparatus. Several countries developed alternative personnel systems that provide for the inclusion of inherited personnel in exchange for their exposure or confession. DDR programs assist ex‑combatants in rejoining society.