Restorative Justice and Peace in Northern Ireland
It is well known that Northern Ireland is engaged in a peace process to recreate society after 30 years of violent internal conflict. Significant progress has been made: political violence has ended, negations between different factions have taken place as have fundamental changes in the system of governance. However, unresolved issues call into question the depth to which society itself has been transformed. This article - summarized from a paper by Brendan McAllister, director of Mediation Northern Ireland - provides an overview of the conflict, peace process and how restorative justice has become a litmus test for the working out of the peace process.
While the country has made tremendous strides in creating peace, four outstanding issues raise questions about the depth of transformation:
- The inability of the peace process to secure sufficient political agreement to form a government within Northern Ireland
- Insufficient consensus about the system of policing, especially given the refusal of republicans to endorse the new police service
- The continuing existence of paramilitaries
- Fears that integration will undermine traditions and identity on each side of the conflict, giving rise to concerns over the direction of the British government’s Community Relations policy and practice.
Of these issues, the lack of faith in the police service creates the most problems for restorative justice programmes. During the 1990s, the lack of trust in the police led paramilitaries to assume many policing functions in their communities. They often used violence to maintain order. Since the peace process began, however, a desire for alternatives and the introduction of restorative justice theory and practice saw the creation of community-based restorative justice schemes. While these schemes have received accolades from academics and others conducting independent research, their community-based nature has led to criticism from some who see them as a cover for the continued operation of paramilitary justice.
Furthermore, continuing lack of trust in police agencies has led community-based restorative justice schemes to refuse to work with the police. When the British government published a set of proposals to overcome the objections of community restorative justice programmes, controversy resulted. In the end, the Government and community restorative justice schemes have failed to reach an operational agreement.
This inability to reach an agreement on restorative justice schemes demonstrates the unfinished business of the peace process. While the new police service seeks to serve the community, memories of former practices means that many communities are unwilling to engage with a government branch that was one time harsh and repressive. At the same time, their unwillingness to work with police and the continued involvement of individuals affiliated with paramilitaries has created a crisis of credibility for the community restorative justice schemes.
Government restorative justice schemes have not been able to avoide this tension. The lack of confidence in the police has extended into the attitudes of some communities about the Youth Conference Service. These issues must be resolved if restorative justice is to achieve its potential in Northern Ireland, and if that society is to achieve true peace.
December 2006
