Africa -- All Articles

These documents discuss restorative justice in Africa. They appear in the order in which they were added to the site with the most recent appearing first.

• Gambia |
• Ghana |
• Namibia |
• Nigeria |
• Rwanda |
• South Africa |
• Uganda |
• Zimbabwe |
• Malawi

Omale, Don John. 2009. Challenging Crime and Criminal Justice Systems in Africa: Towards Restoration of Afrocentric Justice.

On the 8th of October 2009, I was privileged to be invited to a ‘think tank’ international seminar held in Abuja-Nigeria on ‘Crime and Criminal Justice Systems in Africa-Enhancing Human Security’ organised by the African Human Security Initiative Secretariat, the Institute for Security Studies and the West Africa Network for Peace building (WANEP)-Nigeria. The seminar organised by a network of African organisations working on peace, security and conflict created an opportunity aimed at influencing reforms in the criminal justice systems in Africa. It also serves as a dialogue forum for drawing attention to the effects of crime and defective criminal justice systems on the sustainability of the democratic and developmental process of Africa. Recommendations from the seminar also aim to complement the formal National Economic Partnership for African Development (NEPAD)-Africa Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) process. (excerpt)

Grassroots Reconciliation in Sierra Leone

Since the end of its civil war, Sierra Leone has faced many challenges as ex-combatants and their victims return to their communities, often living side-by-side. Official mechanisms such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the U.N. backed tribunals have had limited impact for those living in rural communities who suffered the most from the war. In response, the non-governmental, human rights organization Forum of Conscience has begun to revive traditional conflict resolution measures to bring victims and ex-combatants together in reconciliation ceremonies.

Grassroots Reconciliation in Sierra Leone

Since the end of its civil war, Sierra Leone has faced many challenges as ex-combatants and their victims return to their communities, often living side-by-side. Official mechanisms such as the Truth and Reconciliation Commission and the U.N. backed tribunals have had limited impact for those living in rural communities who suffered the most from the war. In response, the non-governmental, human rights organization Forum of Conscience has begun to revive traditional conflict resolution measures to bring victims and ex-combatants together in reconciliation ceremonies.

Lesotho Explores Restorative Justice in Draft Bill

The Attorney General’s office of Lesotho is reviewing the draft Children’s Protection and Welfare Bill (CPWB) that will be debated when parliament resumes session. Addressing all aspects of the treatment and protection of children, the bill includes an extensive section on restorative justice and diversion for children in conflict with the law.

Lesotho Explores Restorative Justice in Draft Bill

The Attorney General’s office of Lesotho is reviewing the draft Children’s Protection and Welfare Bill (CPWB) that will be debated when parliament resumes session. Addressing all aspects of the treatment and protection of children, the bill includes an extensive section on restorative justice and diversion for children in conflict with the law.

Frank, Cheryl and Ann Skelton. 2007.Practice Standards for Restorative Justice: A Practitioner’s Toolkit.

This Toolkit presents a set of “Practice Standards for Restorative Justice”, and consists of a set of tools to guide their usage. The intended purpose of these standards is to guide the implementation of restorative justice programmes and processes linked to the criminal justice system. The standards presented here were developed from a review of literature in the field of restorative justice, and consultations with stakeholders in this field. They are specifically derived from a range of restorative justice values and principles ... (excerpt)

Court Ruling Upholds Principles of Restorative Justice, Overturns Shaming Sanction

In January, a ruling from the High Court of South Africa (Eastern Cape Division) set aside a lower court ruling requiring a defendant convicted of six counts of fraud to publicly wear a placard announcing her guilt and asking her victims for forgiveness. In setting aside this one aspect of the sentence, the High Court referenced both the unconstitutionality of the sanction and its departure from the principles of restorative justice.

Court Ruling Upholds Principles of Restorative Justice, Overturns Shaming Sanction

In January, a ruling from the High Court of South Africa (Eastern Cape Division) set aside a lower court ruling requiring a defendant convicted of six counts of fraud to publicly wear a placard announcing her guilt and asking her victims for forgiveness. In setting aside this one aspect of the sentence, the High Court referenced both the unconstitutionality of the sanction and its departure from the principles of restorative justice.

Making Sense of North American and South African Differences in the Practice of Restorative Justice

Cultural realities in North America and South Africa influence the way practice is undertaken. In this article, Susan Sharpe and George Lai Thom explore how those differences impact the practice of victim offender mediation in those two contexts.

Organizing Ex-Combatants for Peace in Mozambique

As violent civil conflicts end, ex-combatants are sometimes treated as a risk to social peace and stability. Yet, as one organization in Mozambique demonstrates, ex-combatants can be key players in the peacebuilding process, promoting peace and reconciliation, and mediating peaceful solutions to conflicts.

Ridell, Jennifer. Addressing Crimes Against International Law: Rwanda’s Gacaca in Practice

Rwanda experienced horrific genocide in 1994. In its aftermath, national and international trials were established but these trials failed to deal expeditiously with the large numbers of suspects awaiting trial. To combat this, Rwanda introduced an innovative participative justice mechanism, Gacaca. Modern Gacaca is based on a traditional Rwandan restorative justice mechanism of the same name. Its rooting in Rwanda's history makes Gacaca a much more acceptable form of justice to the Rwandan people than international trials given the international community's abandonment of Rwanda during the genocide. While Gacaca falls short of many international fair trial standards it remains Rwanda’s best hope as a wholly Rwandan process. But, Gacaca is more than just a judicial instrument, it has restorative justice at its origin and seeks, as its ultimate aim, to reconcile Rwanda’s divided communities. To reach this aim, Gacaca has several other objectives including discovering the truth of what happened in 1994, ending impunity which has plagued Rwanda since independence and allowing the Rwandan population to participate in the search for justice at a local level. This thesis studies the importance of these aims to Gacaca and whether the Gacaca courts are meeting their optimistic objectives in order to evaluate whether Gacaca is succeeding in Rwanda. Research was conducted through interviews throughout Rwanda and much civil society research was studied as well as material discussing the objectives from a more conceptual perspective. Gacaca's potential is outstanding and its objectives all play a very important role which, if met, will secure a much more stable future for Rwanda. In practice, however, these objectives are not being met. The population is not actively participating in the trials thus the truth is not aired. Moreover, the perception of victor's justice hampers the ability of Gacaca to end impunity in Rwanda.

Carpenter, Megan M.. Bare Justice: A Feminist Theory of Justice and Its Potential Application to Crimes of Sexual Violence in Post-Genocide Rwanda

The article develops a feminist legal theory of justice that seeks to overcome the limitations of traditional legal strategies. The author then applies her theory to the case of sexual crimes perpetrated against women in Rwanda in an effort to conceptualize a justice that empowers women.

Keller, Linda M.. Achieving Peace with Justice: The International Criminal Court and Ugandan Alternative Justice Mechanisms

The article explores the tension between achieving peace at the expense of justice and vice versa in intra-state conflicts focusing on the conflict between the Lord's Resistance Army and the Ugandan government. The author proposes a solution that incorporates elements of both retributive and restorative justice.

Apori-Nkansah, Lydia . Transitional Justice in Postconflict Contexts: The Case of Sierra Leone's Dual Accountability Mechanisms

This qualitative case study sought to understand the practice of dual transitional justice by examining the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and the Special Court engaged for transitional justice in postconflict Sierra Leone. (author's abstract)

Borer, Tristan Anne. Gendered War and Gendered Peace: Truth Commissions and Postconflict Gender Violence: Lessons From South Africa.

This article argues that the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC), whose aim was to uncover the truth of the atrocities perpetrated under apartheid and develop a framework for reconciliation, failed to reveal the truth about women's experience of sexual violence under apartheid as well as continued "peacetime" violence against women in South Africa. Although it is increasingly evident that women are vulnerable to rape by soldiers from the “other” side as a means of showing the failure of their men as protectors, it has also become clear that women are being raped by soldiers from their own country and by peacekeepers; in both cases, women are being raped by soldiers who are supposedly their protectors. The TRC failed to recognize and address this ongoing violence against women in war and postwar because of the priority given to civil and political rights violations over economic and social rights violations, the adoption of a gender-neutral approach to truth collection, and the criteria used for dispensing amnesty. This article also identifies some consequences of the failure to expose the truth about sexual violence against women during and after apartheid, including its impact on the government’s reparations policy and continued “peacetime” violence against women in South Africa. A person could only be considered a victim and eligible for reparations if he/she came forward to tell of the nature of the victimization. Many victims of sexual violence undoubtedly faced a difficult choice, i.e., to risk estrangement from their families and social exclusion, or making themselves ineligible for reparations. Thus, the TRC failed to set the stage for the creation of a peacetime democratic culture in South Africa with a firm foundation in respect for women’s rights and a priority response to women’s distinctive vulnerability to sexual assault and economic hardship. (abstract courtesy of the National Criminal Justice Reference Service, www.ncjrs.gov).

Exley, Ashlyn. Child reconciliation in post-conflict Sierra Leone.

...[R]econciliation has become a familiar feature of the peace-building landscape, and has been widely adopted as a means of healing the wounds of war and past injustices. National reconciliation initiatives (NRIs) are initiated by governments and generally take place throughout a subject country. A form of NRI that has gained currency is the truth and reconciliation commission (TRC). TRCs are usually state-created ventures that can embrace local healing methods while attempting to bring about reconciliation and mutual understanding. These public forums attempt to rectify harm that has occurred during prolonged conflict or through systematic policies. TRCs have five main characteristics: they investigate abuse, they focus on the past, they have an official mandate, they are temporary, and they are frequently created during a period of political transition. Although they can be used as an alternative to justice in the traditional sense, they often integrate aspects of community justice through an understanding of where responsibility for offenses lie, and frequently include reparation programs for victims. Although it is not always possible to bring perpetrators and victims together, reconciliation initiatives often do when possible, therefore employing some aspects of restorative justice. Reconciliation is centered on the community coming together in dialogue to discuss and overcome violent conflict. It has been suggested that ultimately, reconciliation after prolonged violence can only be realized when retributive justice and restorative justice are blended to create a unique transformational process. The first TRCs occurred in Latin America in the 1980s, including in Argentina, which implemented a National Commission to investigate and understand the mass disappearance of people at the hands of government. The first exercises in truth and reconciliation have largely been criticized as lacking transitional thrust, since repressive governments remained in power. Likewise, early TRCs, including Argentina and Chile, provided reparations to victims in the form of pensions, scholarships, and free social services, which was seen as a way to buy victim support in the wake of general amnesty for military personnel mainly responsible for violence. TRCs have become increasingly prominent as a peacebuilding tool in countries facing intrastate conflicts, particularly since the highly publicized exercise carried out by South Africa almost two decades ago, which was at the time considered to be the most ambitious effort in truth and reconciliation. (excerpt)

Bisong, Kekong. Restorative justice for Niger Delta.

This book seeks to complement the available conflict resolution mechanisms for a stable Niger Delta region. It examines restorative justice as an emerging conflict prevention, management and resolution mechanism that could be of benefit to the Niger Delta region of Nigeria. In recent times restorative justice has been implemented in approximately two dozen countries around the world. Most prominent among these in Africa has been South Africa's Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, the Central African Republic, Ghana, Morocco and Kenya. Most approaches of restorative justice in Africa focus on pardon rather than punishment. These developments suggest that the idea of restorative justice is not just a fashion but represent an innovative approach for citizens of many countries wrestling with the question of how to live with post-conflict situations. More important insight can be found in the transcripts of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission. In that Commission ordinary people had the chance to tell their story. It was open, public process that relied strongly on a widespread desire to heal wounds, not exact retribution. (excerpt)

Editor. Sierra Leone: A country review of crime and criminal justice, 2008

As a participating country in the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) under the New Partnership for African Development (NEPAD) – which Sierra Leone acceded to in 2004 – the country is an appropriate candidate for a review of its criminal justice system. Although the justice system is not included in the APRM review process, it has important implications for democracy and good governance. This review is intended to complement the formal APRM process by focussing [sic] on a sector currently outside its focus. Assessment of the criminal justice system in Sierra Leone focused on policing and prosecution, prisons, the judiciary, access to justice, juvenile justice, customary justice and the various international and regional treaties relating to crime and the criminal justice system signed and ratified and taken on board by Sierra Leone. Primary and secondary sources were employed extensively to carry out the assessment. The primary sources comprised in-depth discussions, interviews and focus-group discussions with selected respondents. The secondary sources comprised information from desk research and literature reviews. (excerpt)

Penal Reform International. Rapport de monitoring et de recherche sur la gacaca

This report focuses on community service, a sentence issued by the Gacaca Courts which can replace up to half of the prison sentence for those perpetrators of genocide who voluntarily confessed to their actions. Community service is intended to be an opportunity for the perpetrators to provide practical help and assistance to the victims and their families, thus encouraging reconciliation and peaceful cohabitation amongst the two groups. Drawing on extensive field research and testimony from all those involved in community service in Rwanda, this report highlights the successes but also several areas of increasing concern surrounding this innovative tool of reconciliation. (publisher's abstract)

Penal Reform International. Monitoring and Research Report on the Gacaca

This report explores the challenges faced by the Rwandan national authorities during the information gathering phase of the Gacaca process. (publisher's abstract)