Minister to Launch Draft Policy on Restorative Justice

Minister of Justice and Attorney General, Senator Dorothy Lightbourne, is to officially launch the consultation series on the draft policy on Restorative Justice, which begins tomorrow (Aug. 12), at the Girl Guides headquarters, 2 Waterloo Road in Kingston.
Director of the Justice Training Institute (JTI), Audrey Sewell, made the disclosure during an interview with the JIS News, today (August 11).
According to the JTI Director, the consultation would feature presentations and discussions about issues related to Restorative Justice.
“There will be a brief video presentation and we will facilitate discussions and this will be done in plenary format, where we will have four circles and we will be asking some questions to elicit responses and generate discussions and these will be facilitated by specific moderators. We will then be having short presentations on restorative justice that will be facilitated by personnel from the Dispute Resolution Foundation (DRF),” Mrs. Sewell noted.
The consultation is expected to commence at 5:00 p.m. and last for approximately three hours.
According to the Director, Restorative Justice is a process of getting the community to take ownership of their issues and conflicts.
She explained that if there is a breach or conflict and harm has been inflicted on a member of the community, restorative justice seeks to get the offender to take responsibility for his or her action, to express regret and to restore the victim as much as possible to his or her original state.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Justice, Carol Palmer will chair the programme, while Chief Justice, Zaila McCalla will bring remarks.
The series of consultations will continue in Montego Bay, St. James, on August 19, when it will be held at Sam Sharpe Teachers’ College, and on August 20, it will be held at the St. Johns Methodist Community Action Centre in Granville, St. James.