RESTORATIVE JUSTICE IS ALTERNATIVE TO LOCAL JUSTICE: MANI

The coordinator of the Sycamore Tree thinks an alternative to the country’s local justice system could be “restorative Justice.”

Simon Mani, has been coordinating the voluntary organisation for more than 10 years, and thinks the local Justice system is focusing only on perpetrators and not on rehabilitating them in preparation for when they return to the society.

Mr. Mani says the current justice system is also ignoring other parties affected by crime, such as the victim and the victim’s family and the perpetrator’s family.

The Sycamore Tree Co-coordinator says there is a recommendation inside the peacebuilding policy at the Ministry of National Reconciliation, Unity and Peace for the Government to review the Justice system and come up with alternatives.

He says Restorative Justice is one alternative.

 

“We need to have an alternative because at the moment all we do is warehousing of human beings in the correctional facilities and at the end of their sentence, remain inchanged so what we want to do is create and environment in which they would be responsible for their own lives so that they become better citizens of our country after serving time.”

Restorative Justice focuses on mending broken relationships through reconciliation.