Restorative justice in the Cambodian community: Challenges and possibilities in practice

The principles and practices of restorative justice, as they’ve been developed in Western contexts, do not fully match the social values in the Cambodian community. Hierarchal social values, such as chbab srey and chbab proh, conflict with the non-hierarchal ideal in circles. In VOM, gender roles and expectations are active and challenges victim empowerment ideals. The victim and offender dichotomy, a relationship of right and wrong, challenges the Buddhist value of equanimity. FGC is perhaps the most compatible practice to Cambodian social values. The principles of restorative justice do match with Cambodian social values in the mutual recognition of interconnectedness and collective responsibility. The preservation and re-building of culture is very important among Cambodians because of the social and economic losses incurred during the Vietnam War and Khmer Rouge period. Any effort to promote restorative practices in the Cambodian community should bear this in mind. (from the paper)