NCJ Number
196410
Journal
British Journal of Criminology Volume: 42 Issue: 3 Dated: Summer 2002 Pages: 534-562
Date Published
2002
Length
29 pages
Annotation
This article examines the development of community-based restorative justice in the context of the Northern Ireland peace process.
Abstract
In parallel with the political changes introduced in the Good Friday Agreement and the reforms of policing and the criminal justice system that occurred as a result of that accord, community-based restorative justice programs were introduced as alternatives to paramilitary punitive violence in Northern Ireland. The first part of this article summarizes the history of the developments within restorative justice in Northern Ireland. Restorative justice activities have focused on preparation of victims and offenders, mediation, family group conferencing, and the monitoring of agreements. The second part of the article addresses some of the thematic issues raised by the critique of the informalism associated with restorative justice, with attention to the restorative justice debate in Northern Ireland. These themes include community-based restorative justice as sinister; the idealization of "community" within community-based restorative justice; community-based restorative justice as a technical and evaluative failure; and community-based restorative justice as an impossibility. The article concludes with a reassessment of the pessimistic accounts that have dominated much of the discussion on informal justice over the past decades. The authors conclude that informalism is possible in Northern Ireland when it is based on a genuine commitment to the values and practices of restorative justice, is located in politically organized and dynamic communities, is well managed and staffed by committed volunteers, and is guided by locally developed standards of practice that are based on accepted human rights principles. 137 references