What is Restorative Justice?

CRJ DEFINITION OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE:
Restorative Justice is a process that advocates that the people most effective at finding a solution to a problem are the people who are most directly impacted by the problem.

Opportunities are created for those involved in a conflict to work together to understand, clarify, resolve the incident and work together towards repairing the harm caused.

Restorative Justice is a different approach to the management of crime and justice and other wrongdoings that can occur in any situation, including schools, neighbourhoods, businesses, prisons, etc.

RJ has a primary focus on people, and the damage that is caused to relationships as a result of a wrongdoing. It further pays attention to healing the damage in a range of ways, not all of which are focussed on punishment. A foundation principle is that of RJ balancing the needs of the community, victims and offenders after an offence has occurred.

RJ recognises the vital role of conciliation and mediation as important processes in healing the damage to the community, victims and offenders after crime. RJ also places the healing into a context that is both punitive where necessary, and reparative where possible. RJ principles require offenders to be accountable for their crimes, just as the current system does, but it requires even more accountability by personalising the situation, the problem and the solution.

Over time, the law seems to have alienated people and become a depersonalised system, particularly for victims of crime. The community seems to have said that crime is a problem for police and the courts to solve, but in so saying, it seems to absolve itself from any power to address its own problems.

The dilemma presented by the incessant increase in crime in western society might be more easily managed by collaborative approaches based on a system that embraces the humanity of all involved and the need to reconcile at a very fundamental level.