Restorative Justice

• Restorative justice is a system for dealing with criminal behaviour where the focus is on rehabilitation through reconciliation.
• Offenders get to see the impart of their crimes, whilst victims are given a voice, which helps them feel empowered and get closure.
• The basic idea of restorative justice is that the offenders pay back their victims in one form or another.
• Often when a person is convicted of a crime, it is regarded as an offence against the state. This results in the state needing to punish the individual to enforce the law.
• Restorative justice programs focus on the needs of the individual rather than the need of the state - emphasis is switched from punishment to rehabilitation
• Treating crime using restorative justice allows for a healing process - reparation rather than retribution