St.
Louis College of Bulanao
Purok 6, Bulanao, Tabuk City, Kalinga 3800
TITLE/TOPIC
DISPUTE RESOLUTION AND CRISIS/INCIDENT MANAGEMENT
MODULE 2
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE SYSTEM
I. INTRODUCTION
This Chapter includes the concept of restorative justice, its principles and importance and
distinction of restorative justice from traditional legal; system as modes in resolving disputes.
II. LEARNING OUTCOMES
At the end of the lesson, the students should be able to:
Realize that conflict can be resolve peacefully through restorative justice
Appreciate the importance and practice of restorative justice
Apply learned concept in their daily life
III. COURSE CONTENT
LESSON 2
CONCEPT OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE
Restorative justice views crime as more than breaking the law – it also causes harm to people,
relationships, and the community. So a just response must address those harms as well as the wrongdoing.
If the parties are willing, the best way to do this is to help them meet to discuss those harms and how to
about bring resolution. Other approaches are available if they are unable or unwilling to meet. Sometimes
those meetings lead to transformational changes in their lives. Notice three big ideas:
(1) Repair: crime causes harm and justice requires repairing that harm; (2) encounter: the best way to
determine how to do that is to have the parties decide together; and (3) transformation: this can cause
fundamental changes in people, relationships and communities.
A. RESTORATIVE JUSTICE DEFINED
Restorative Justice is a theory of justice that emphasizes repairing the harm caused by criminal
behaviour. It is best accomplished through cooperative processes that allow all willing
stakeholders to meet, although other approaches are available when that is impossible. This can
lead to transformation of people, relationships and communities.
Restorative Justice is a process through which remorseful offenders accept responsibility for
their misconduct, particularly to their victims and to the community. It creates obligation to make
things right through proactive involvement of victims, ownership of the offender of the crime and
the community in search for solutions which promote repair, reconciliation and reassurance.
Thus, the restorative justice process is actively participated in by the victim, the offender, and/or
any individual or community member affected by the crime to resolve conflicts resulting from the
criminal offense, often with the help of a fair and impartial third party.
B. THE FOUNDATIONAL PRINCIPLES OF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE HAVE BEEN
SUMMARIZED AS FOLLOWS:
1. Crime causes harm and justice should focus on repairing that harm.
2. The people most affected by the crime should be able to participate in its resolution.
3. The responsibility of the government is to maintain order and of the community to build
peace.
C. IF RESTORATIVE JUSTICE WERE A BUILDING, IT WOULD HAVE FOUR CORNER
POSTS:
1. Inclusion of all parties
2. Encountering the other side
3. Making amends for the harm
REYNA DUMAGUING-SIBATON
4. Reintegration of the parties into their communities
INCLUSION
Restorative justice processes are more inclusive than the traditional criminal justice processes. They
actively invite all affected parties--victims, offenders, and community members--to participate in
resolving the crime.
Inclusion seeks the full participation of all parties, and it is accomplished by:
(1) Inviting all interested parties to participate,
(2) Expecting the parties to pursue their own interests, and
(3) Being flexible enough to accept new approaches relevant to the particular situation.
ENCOUNTER- Restorative justice places a high value on having the victim and offender encounter one
another. This encounter might be done directly in a meeting between the two (and perhaps others as well)
with a facilitator assisting them. It can be done indirectly through exchange of letters, videos and by
messages delivered by a third party.
The programmes that make encounters possible -- victim offender mediation, conferencing,
circles, and so on -- are strongly identified with restorative justice. Stories of confession, forgiveness and
reconciliation forcefully remind us of the relational wounds caused by crime and the need to address
those.
Encounter, however, is not the only dimension of restorative justice, and is certainly not an
essential element of a restorative response (or else there could be no restorative response when a party is
not identified or is unwilling/unable to meet the other).
A restorative encounter has five interwoven elements:
meeting
narrative
emotion
understanding, and
agreement
Each of these elements contributes to the strength of the encounter. One that features all five elements
will be most powerful in helping parties move toward healing.
AMENDS- Restorative justice seeks to repair the harm done by crime. Whenever possible this repair
should be done by the persons responsible for the harm. That is why restorative justice values efforts by
offenders to make amends.
Four Elements or Facets of Amends:
apology
changed behaviour
restitution, and
Generosity
Each element has potential for helping the victim to heal and the offender to become a productive part
of the community, although usually more than one will be involved in a restorative outcome. It is the
victim and offender who decides which ones are important and feasible in particular cases. That is why
restorative encounters are important.
REINTEGRATION- Crime causes injuries. It also can result in both the victim and offender
experiencing stigmatization. Therefore, restorative justice places a high value on the reintegration of the
victim and of the offender. The goal is to have them become whole, contributing members of their
communities.
Victims often feel stigmatized by family, friends and the community. Sometimes this is because
of the loneliness experienced during and after a traumatic crisis. But sometimes it is because victims are
uncomfortable reminders to those around them that crime can happen to anyone. Out of fear, people who
might naturally support victims instead attempt to explain away what happened by blaming the victim or
wishing he/she would "just get over it." This works to separate the victim from loved ones and
community members and can lead to stigmatization.
Offenders also face stigmatization. Since crime causes fear in the community, offenders
become vilified in the eyes of society. Incarceration separates them from their families and communities.
Upon release, offenders frequently lack stable support structures, and even start-up money for food and
REYNA DUMAGUING-SIBATON
clothes, housing, transportation, and other parts of a healthy productive life. At the same time, offenders
face discrimination in their attempts to become productive citizens.
Reintegration occurs when the victim or offender can become active and productive parts of
their communities. To accomplish this, victims and offenders must find communities with the following
characteristics:
(1) Mutual respect for those in the community
(2) Mutual commitment to others in the community, and
(3) Intolerance for--but understanding of--deviant behaviour by members of the community
RESTORATIVE JUSTICE VS. TRADITIONAL LEGAL SYSTEM
Traditionally when a crime is committed, the justice system has been primarily concerned
with three questions:
Who did it?
What laws were broken?
What should be done to punish or treat the offender?
This type of approach is considered retributive, where the intent is to get retribution or punishment for an
offense committed.
Restorative justice programs emphasize a set of different questions:
Who has been harmed?
What is the nature of the harm resulting from the crime?
What needs to be done to “make it right” or repair the harm?
Who is responsible for this repair?
How can the responsible party return to a law-abiding life?
The intent is to restore the victim and community affected by the crime as close as possible to pre-crime
conditions.
IV. ASSESSMENT
GENERAL INSTRUCTION: Read each question very carefully. Answer legibly, clearly and concisely.
Write your answer on a yellow pad paper. Do not write anything at the back of your answer sheet. You may
use another sheet of paper until completed. Students who are residing in Tabuk should submit it personally
to the CJJE OFFICE on September 20, 2020. Those who are in Balbalan, Tanudan, Lubuagan, Tinglayan,
Pinukpuk and Pasil who cannot physically submit its hard copy should stay in their respective places until
someone will arrive for retrieval on September 21, 2020. Should you have any questions or clarifications,
you may message me through my messenger account (Reyna Dumaguing) or call my number
(09455776672).
I. SELF-REFLECTION
1. If you were the victim of a dispute/conflict, what mode of dispute resolution would you
prefer: traditional legal system or restorative justice? Why?
2. If you were the offender, what mode of dispute resolution would you prefer: traditional
legal system or restorative justice? Why?
V. REFERENCES
Alternative Modes of Dispute Resolution: The Philippine Practice by Victor P. lazatin
https://www.ide.go.jp/library/English/Publish/Download/Als/pdf/18.pdf
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/276355338_Alternative_Dispute_Resolution_Module
http://restorativejustice.org/restorative-justice/about-restorative-justice/tutorial-intro-to-
restorative-justice/lesson-1-what-is-restorativejustice/amends/
#sthash.vm2yFG5B.LIwvEAv4.dpbs
REYNA DUMAGUING-SIBATON
St. Louis College of Bulanao
Purok 6, Bulanao, Tabuk City, Kalinga 3800
This module is a requirement of the St. Louis College of Bulanao in response to
the implementation of the Blended Learning way of Instruction.
This Learning Material is a property of the College of Education – St. Louis
College of Bulanao, Tabuk City. It aims to improve students’ performance specifically in
the Criminology Education.
Date of Development : September, 2020
Resource Location : Bulanao, Tabuk City
Learning Area : CRIM 15 (Dispute Resolution and Crisis
Management)
Learning Resource Type : Module
General Instruction/s:
The module will discuss the concept, principle and importance of restorative
justice. Series of activities and discussions will encourage you to explore and learn
about the topic. Through this module, the following instruction/s should be followed.
1. This module is exclusively for SLCB students only.
2. Reproduction and use of this module for any purpose is strictly prohibited, unless
with the written permission from SLCB.
3. You may use this module for any acceptable purposes.
REYNA DUMAGUING-SIBATON
