Pacific

Provides articles discussing restorative justice advancements in the Pacific. Articles appear in the order in which they were added to the site with the most recent appearing first.

• Tonga |
• Australia |
• Fiji |
• Guam |
• New Zealand |
• Palau |
• Papua New Guinea

Marshall, Christopher D.. Offending, Restoration, and the Law-Abiding Community: Restorative Justice in the New Testament and in the New Zealand Experience.

During the past thirty years, a growing conversation about the "restorative" dimensions of justice in contrast to its "retributive" dimensions in addressing crime, wrongdoing, and cultural conflict has emerged around the world. In New Zealand, an initiative known as Family Group Conferencing has virtually replaced the conventional juvenile justice that preceded it. This initiative has inspired many people around the world to adapt that restorative approach in many different settings. The topic of this essay is restorative justice in the New Testament and in the New Zealand experience. I was asked to investigate the possibility of a senior Maori figure from New Zealand accompanying me to the Society of Christian Ethics conference where this essay was first presented so that he or she could speak on restorative justice from an indigenous perspective. Despite my best efforts, that was not possible—which is a shame, really, because the New Testament text on which I here reflect includes features that I suspect indigenous readers are far better equipped to appreciate than are Western biblical scholars, who instinctively bring with them a set of individualistic assumptions that are often ill suited to the cultural horizons of the text itself. What, then, is "restorative justice"? What place does it occupy in the New Zealand justice system? And what has the New Testament got to do with it? (Excerpt).

Mackenzie, Jean. Facilitators'/facilitator assistants' experience of a restorative justice programme.

This phenomenological study examined the lived experience of six facilitators and facilitator assistants participating in a Restorative Justice (RJ) program in Western Australia. The aim was to establish an extended and informed understanding of the group dynamics, processes, outcomes and impacts on the participants in the program. Part of this exploration involved looking into commonalities and differences between the particular program under investigation and other RJ programs. Of particular interest were the development of victim empathy, victim and offender support, prevention of revictimisation, and the overall healing process of victims of crime, offenders and the wider community. Also under scrutiny were the facilitation of groups with highly negative emotional content, and the question of whether expectations and outcomes experienced by victims of crime and offenders in a model in which the offender has contact with the primary victim, were also evidenced when surrogate victims participated. The findings in this study suggested that the model under review appeared to have a number of benefits for victims and offenders, when compared to RJ programs which brought victims into direct contact with their offender. These included such elements as increased safety, protection from re‐victimisation, and the opportunity for some level of healing in situations when the actual victim or the offender was not available. There was no evidence that re‐victimisation was an issue but rather that the model provided a positive benefit by offering a less threatening alternative to direct contact between actual victims and offenders. Victims could access some closure and healing by telling their stories to a ‘one step removed’ offender. Offenders too received some benefits. They had the opportunity to be heard, to achieve some understanding of the impact of their behaviour, and some insight into how their victims might have felt. They were then able, working from within a community of acceptance to make some plans for reparation and for moving on. There was strong evidence of positive changes in both victims and offenders. (author's abstract)

Editor. New Ways Forward; Pathways to Change National Victims of Crime Conference September 2008

A summation of what the Pathways to Change National Victims of Crime Conference September 2008 was about, focusing particularly on Dr. Jo-Anne Wemmers' keynote speech.

Lucey, Terry. A Balanced Approach in Dealing with an Offense

The personal story of someone who has worked in a non-restorative justice-oriented area of the criminal justice system and his reflection on the differences between the two approaches.

Editor. International Restorative Justice Week; Facing the Questions

An article relating the story that Denis Collins, the key speaker at an event sponsored by the Restorative Justice Unit, told about his son's murder and Denis' subsequent experience with victim-offender conferencing.

Editor. Wisdom gained through experience

The theme for this year’s internationally celebrated Restorative Justice Week prompted us to reflect on what wisdom we can draw from the six years of Restorative Justice Unit operation. What can experience show us that we can “simplify” to inform future directions for Restorative Justice in DCS? (excerpt)

Editor. Managing emotions at a victim offender conference

Strong feelings are often an intense and present part of victim-offender conferences. This article describes how preparation should make both the victim and the offender ready for the expression of feelings, and uses a story to demonstrate what that often looks like.

Campaign on way to counter cyberbullies

from Anthony Loncaric's article in Brimbank Weekly: Parents living in the north-west are calling for more support to deal with cyberbullying as the state government prepares a new advertising campaign to encourage young people to speak up. Education Minister Martin Dixon said the campaign would be similar to the hard-hitting advertisements aimed at reducing the road toll.

Workman, Kim. The case for restorative justice -- A change is gonna come.

Eighteen months later, my critics are silent. Apart from the initial promise of the ‘Drivers of Crime’ initiative, most of the focus has been to introduce legislation which exercises even more control over offenders, and effectively restrict the role of the community in exercising informal social control and making effective interventions. We have seen legislation which has extended the supervision of offenders, restricted bail and parole, expanded the rights of the Police in exercising search and seizure. ACC support for victims of sexual offending is now limited to those who can prove that they are mentally ill. There have been a series of mean spirited policy changes, aimed at finding new ways to punish prisoners. Legal aid for prisoners appearing before the Parole Board is now severely limited, the government is supporting the removal of prisoner voting rights, new security rules have severely restricted prisoner eligibility for release to work, and the prison regime is operating under sub-standard conditions, with double bunking, and prisoners are locked in their cells for between 16 and 20 hours a day. In addition, the three strikes bill, which will become law at the end of this month, has the potential to increase some sentences by up to 11,000 percent . The prison population continues to rise, doubling over the last fifteen years. (excerpt)

New Zealand: Church leaders call for review of criminal justice system

From the article by the Episcopal News Service: Anglican church leaders in New Zealand are urging politicians to set up a special commission to investigate the country's criminal justice system. The move follows a remark by the Deputy Prime Minister Bill English that "prisons are a fiscal and moral failure." Archbishops David Moxon and Brown Turei – along with the Anglican Social Justice Commissioner, the Rev. Anthony Dancer – fully agree with English's view. They suggest politicians can build on English's remarks by: setting up a criminal justice commission to provide independent advice to the government; taking a non-political, bi-partisan approach to those issues; and systematically investigating alternatives to jail, such as restorative justice.

How to reconcile stoning a parrot

from the entry by LaraKim on lafeberconservationwildlife.com: This past week, a boy on a field trip with his school picked up a rock and threw it at a kea, an endangered parrot in New Zealand. The bird died. The reports indicate that there was no premeditated maliciousness in the boy as the act was a spontaneous one not uncommon in the young.

Helping the community, building connections

by Lynette Parker Recently, we shared the article “Give prisoners the chance to help the community” by Erwin James in which he describes prison as consisting of “enforced idleness” and working to “create model prisoners instead of model citizens.” Erwin describes the benefits of programmes allowing prisoners to do something for the community. Referring to his own participation in a Braille unit when incarcerated for murder, Erwin says, “...it was the first time in our lives that we had experienced the satisfaction that can be gained from helping other people.” I thought about Erwin’s article as I read about prisoners making trauma bears in the Australian state of Victoria. The programme – a partnership between Prison Fellowship Australia and the prisons – teaches prisoners how to sew and stuff the soft toys that are provided to emergency service personnel to use to comfort children experiencing an illness or injury and given to disadvantages children in the community. The prisoners may also pay for the materials to make a soft toy for a loved one. Programme volunteers describe the paradox of watching the men who have caused harm work to create the soft toys. As described in the article, “Masculine hands clenched tight ready to harm or reaching out to thieve and finally bound for prison now develop something creative and productive that brings joy to traumatised children and their loved ones.”

Alder, Christine and Wundersitz, Joy. Family Conferencing and Juvenile Justice: The Way Forward or Misplaced Optimism?

An anthology of 11 papers assesses the use and dimensions of family group conferencing (FGC) in Australia and New Zealand. FGCs involves a meeting between the offender and his/her extended family, the victim and his/her supporters, and other relevant parties to discuss the offense and to negotiate appropriate responses. The most innovative and potentially positive aspects of family group conferencing are the involvement of the victim and the young offender's family in decision making. The papers address whether punishment without stigmatization is possible, whether reoffending can be prevented, and if family conferencing represents the best alternative.

Alder, Christine and Wundersitz, Joy. New Directions in Juvenile Justice Reform in Australia

Reviews the adaptations of the New Zealand juvenile justice reforms to Australia, especially the use of family group conferences. After reviewing the history of juvenile justice reforms in Australia, the authors discuss the features of family group conferences, the differences between the New Zealand and Australian versions, and the implications for juvenile justice practice

Bates, Brian. A diverse approach to juvenile offending in the Northern Territory

Brian Bates, Commissioner of Police in the Northern Territory, presents a Juvenile Pre-Court Diversion Scheme being used in that territory as an alternative approach to juvenile offending. Specifically, it is an alternative to an adversarial system in response to juvenile offending. This alternative scheme provides a range of interventions to divert juveniles from the criminal justice system. The paper sketches the background to this approach, describes each of the diversionary interventions, and reports on results from the first nine months of the program’s operations.

Joseph, Robert. Maori Customary Laws and Institutions: Crimes Against the Person, Marriage, Interment, Theft

In a topical rather than a historical study (though with historical examples throughout), Joseph surveys the kinds of customary laws and institutions among the Maori in pre-colonial times, with particular attention to those relating to crimes against the person, marriage, interment, and theft. While there were differences in laws among various Maori groups, Joseph states that in general Maori laws and institutions presumed a collective responsibility for offending and restoration, and embodied a longing for harmony. Also, they rooted in and stemmed from the religious framework of Maori life.

Hakaiha, M. "Youth Justice Teams and the Family Meeting in Western Australia: A Trans-Tasman analysis."

This paper describes the juvenile diversion scheme known as Youth Justice Teams established as pilot programs in Western Australia. Each team consists of a youth justice coordinator, a police officer, a Ministry of Education officer and an Aboriginal community worker. YJTs have a mandate to divert juvenile cases deemed too serious for police cautioning and not serious enough to require court disposition. The roles of each team member is described and the case referral process and assessment plan is explained. The primary decision is whether to hold a family meeting based upon the New Zealand version of FGCs. The stages of the family meeting process are described and this process is compared with New Zealand FGCs.

Maxwell, Gabrielle and Morris, Allison. The New Zealand Model of Family Group Conferences.

The authors describe the New Zealand model of family group conferences and how this model includes both traditional and innovative approaches. They describe the process of FGCs and define some of the key concepts. An empirical evaluation of the process is explained and data is presented on who attends, the penalties imposed, participant's satisfaction, and cultural appropriateness of the process. Finally, they discuss some inherent contradictions in the model and problems of implementation.

Moore, David B and O'Connell, Terry. Family Conferencing in Wagga Wagga: A Communitarian Model of Justice

Originally part of a contribution to a debate at Melbourne University, this paper describes the Wagga Model and engages with academic critics, giving particular regard to the perspective of local police, welfare and legal workers. The origins of the Wagga Wagga model of family group conferences is explained, difficulties in its implementation described, and its modification based upon Braithwaite's theories discussed. The theoretical basis for the model is discussed and the authors respond to some of the criticisms of this version of FGCs. The early evaluation effort and its results are briefly described and the application of the approach to schools is discussed. Finally, seven case studies are presented describing case background, police intervention, the caution process, outcomes and issues for each.

Polk, Kenneth. Family Conferencing: Theoretical and Evaluative Questions

This paper discusses the recent juvenile justice diversion schemes involving family group conferences in New Zealand and Australia from their theoretical perspective and how they compare with previous juvenile justice reform efforts. Developmental and coercive justice institutional responses are compared and their limitations are presented. Polk distinguishes between integrative and reintegrative strategies, and calls for development of both approaches. It is suggested that FGCs are limited to the latter and describes the failure to involve primary institutions. Questions of the effectiveness of FGCs are raised.