Contesting transitional justice in Peru explores how global ideas of transitional justice have shaped Peru’s response to the legacies of the internal armed conflict of 1980–2000. Critically interrogating the tenets of transitional justice and drawing on three in-depth case studies from Ayacucho, Eva Willems examines how survivors engage with initiatives regarding memorialisation, truth-telling, reparations and exhumations. Moving beyond the victim–perpetrator divide, she introduces the notion of a multi-layered survivor identity to capture the complex agency of civilians affected by and involved in wartime violence. Using a (meta-)historical lens, Willems reveals how survivors use transitional justice not only to confront the past but also to challenge ongoing structural injustices and claim thicker citizenship. Offering fresh insights into armed conflict and citizenship in Peru and beyond, Contesting transitional justice in Peru rethinks how survivors pursue justice and recognition and how knowledge about (post-)conflict societies is produced.