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Summary

Yoshida, Toshio (2002). The future of the Japanese criminal justice system In, Lode Walgrave, ed., Repositioning Restorative Justice. Devon: Willan Publishing. Pp. 328-338.

Toshio Yoshida begins this chapter with the observation that in many countries there have been developments aimed at socially constructive responses to criminal acts. In this regard, he refers in general to increasing adoption of restorative justice principles and processes, and specifically to the growth of victim-offender mediation, family group conferencing, and other restorative practices. However, he remarks, Japanese criminal justice still relies on its traditional punitive response to crime. Hence, victim-offender mediation has not been introduced as an alternative measure for dealing with crime and its effects. Against this background, Yoshida explores the future of Japanese criminal justice with the aim of moving it toward a system based on restorative justice. To do this, he discusses punitive sanctions in Japan, a significant revision of the law pertaining to juveniles in November 2000, restorative justice and criminal law, and criminal procedures in Japan.

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