This dissertation is the culmination of extensive literature study on the application of Restorative Justice in the South African Correctional System. International and national resources on the application of Restorative Justice both in Corrections and as pre-sentence option had been studied. The background of the penal system and the development of Restorative Justice as part of the Criminal Justice System are investigated by looking at ancient practices, indigenous and modern practices. The study intends to draw on experience from other countries, while at the same time advocate for the development of a uniquely South African model or practice. The role of the most important stakeholders, namely victim, offender and community is emphasized with reference to the challenges that offenders face in terms of reintegration and the lack of resources in communities to enable them to honour Restorative Justice agreements. / Criminology and Security Science / M. A. (Criminology)

This dissertation evaluates the feasibility of extending restorative justice to school disciplinary action in South African schools. It considers developments in education and identifies relevant shortcomings before addressing them. The extension of restorative justice to school disciplinary action establishes a new way of thinking that has, until recently, not been applied to civil law. In Dikoko v Mokhatla (2007 (1) BCLR 1 (CC)) honourable justice Sachs ruled that any remedy applied in civil law must aim for the restitution of relationships, rather than punishment of the guilty party. Children are often on unequal footing compared to adults when it comes to prosecution or punishment and consequently they are exposed to excessive punitive measures, as illustrated by the Dey saga (Le Roux and Others v Dey 2011 (3) SA 274 (CC)). The implementation of restorative justice as an alternative to current school disciplinary action may result in limiting these excessive punishments. Because of the universal nature of the subject a comparison will be made to the successful implementation of restorative justice programs in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. The various departments of education in these countries have developed proactive strategies for managing students' behaviour. In New Zealand, schools place particular emphasis on the use of restorative practices, rather than suspension, to ensure the establishment of beneficial learning environments. Furthermore, parents’ and community members' involvement is encouraged by inter alia the National Safe Schools Framework, which has been implemented in Australia since 2003. These countries have long been regarded as leaders in the field of restorative justice. It is of the utmost importance to consider international trends due to the guidance that it can offer school governing bodies in South Africa. The principle of restorative justice has received extensive international support due to various practical tools that have been developed by the above-mentioned countries. Therefore, these tools are considered in order to assist governing bodies in determining the way forward in South African schools. / LLM (Comparative Child Law), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

This dissertation evaluates the feasibility of extending restorative justice to school disciplinary action in South African schools. It considers developments in education and identifies relevant shortcomings before addressing them. The extension of restorative justice to school disciplinary action establishes a new way of thinking that has, until recently, not been applied to civil law. In Dikoko v Mokhatla (2007 (1) BCLR 1 (CC)) honourable justice Sachs ruled that any remedy applied in civil law must aim for the restitution of relationships, rather than punishment of the guilty party. Children are often on unequal footing compared to adults when it comes to prosecution or punishment and consequently they are exposed to excessive punitive measures, as illustrated by the Dey saga (Le Roux and Others v Dey 2011 (3) SA 274 (CC)). The implementation of restorative justice as an alternative to current school disciplinary action may result in limiting these excessive punishments. Because of the universal nature of the subject a comparison will be made to the successful implementation of restorative justice programs in the United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand. The various departments of education in these countries have developed proactive strategies for managing students' behaviour. In New Zealand, schools place particular emphasis on the use of restorative practices, rather than suspension, to ensure the establishment of beneficial learning environments. Furthermore, parents’ and community members' involvement is encouraged by inter alia the National Safe Schools Framework, which has been implemented in Australia since 2003. These countries have long been regarded as leaders in the field of restorative justice. It is of the utmost importance to consider international trends due to the guidance that it can offer school governing bodies in South Africa. The principle of restorative justice has received extensive international support due to various practical tools that have been developed by the above-mentioned countries. Therefore, these tools are considered in order to assist governing bodies in determining the way forward in South African schools. / LLM (Comparative Child Law), North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2015

A qualitative research design that is explorative, descriptive and contextual in nature was employed in order to understand and describe the factors that predispose children to be in conflict with the law and to develop guidelines to support these children. The data-collection techniques were individual semi-structured interviews and field notes. The sample consisted of eight (8) children who volunteered to be interviewed. The theme that emerged during data collection and analysis was the factors that predispose children to break the law. Five categories were identified in this theme, namely * Personal factors * Family factors * Community factors * Police service factors and * Education factors It is recommended that all the institutions involved in the provision and maintenance of the child's mental health be involved in the implementation of the guidelines. / Health Studies / M.A. (Health Studies)

Thesis (MTh)--Stellenbosch University, 2013. / ENGLISH ABSTRACT: “Restorative Justice Programmes are proliferating internationally and gaining mainstream acceptance as alternative or supplementary justice interventions". Immarigieon & Daly, (1997:13). With the growth of the Restorative Justice approach in the various disciplines, the need to assess the programme - its principal goals, effectiveness and impact on offenders / inmates in Correctional Services Centres / facilities - is imperative. The thesis investigates the socio-religious factors of the Restorative Justice programme and evaluates their impact, whether it is short-term or long-term, on offenders serving a sentence at Voorberg Correctional Centre / Facility, within the Department of Correctional Services of South Africa. The primary objectives of this research are: 1. To determine if the Restorative Justice programme includes socio-religious factors or not? 2. To study the impact of these socio-factors and how the programme participants understand the programme in terms of the following: (1) programme attendance; (2) awareness raising; (3) gaining a better understanding and perception of the programme contents. 3. To study these socio-religious factors and activities of Restorative Justice programme within the framework of Harden’s Faith-Based Programme Theory, and to formulate parameters for an Integrated Faith-Based Programme for Restorative Justice within the context of the Department of Correctional Services. One the one hand the programme of Restorative Justice is rendered by the Spiritual Care Division, as a spiritual / religious programme. On the other hand, it is also rendered as a Correctional programme by Case Intervention Officers within the Department of Correctional Services. One Orientation Manual is used by both divisions. The policy of the Department of Correctional Services focuses on the social aspects in order to pursue and meet its objectives. But the researcher argues that the impact of the programme depends on how it links the socio- and religious characters of Restorative Justice. Building on existing literature on an Integrated Faith-Based Outcome Theory Model of Restorative Justice, the researcher proposes a new programme theory and programme outcomes that include both these factors, namely social and religious, as mechanisms to enhance social and religious acceptance and change. The researcher strongly believes that both socio- and religious factors will assist future programme participants of restorative justice in creating better awareness, knowledge and social acceptance as short term goals of the programme. On the other hand both the socio- and religious factors can contribute in fulfilling the long term goals within the lives of programme participants, such as the reintegration society, and the restoration of their relationships with themselves, victims, families and communities.

Pirmojoje šio magistrinio darbo dalyje pateikta nusikalstamų veikų aukų ir nukentėjusiojo sąvokos skirtumai. Antrojoje darbo dalyje identifikuoti plačiausiai visuomenėje paplitę nusikalstamų veikų aukų stereotipai ir pateikta šių stereotipų istorinė bei doktrininė apžvalga, taip pat jų sąvokos, reikšmės bei pasekmių nusikalstamų veikų aukoms analizė. Trečiojoje- išnagrinėta nusikaltstamų veikų aukų teisinė padėtis apžvelgiant tarptautinius bei nacionalinius teisės aktus, reglamentuojančius nusikaltimų aukų apsaugą, atlikta teisinės padėties statuso analizė istoriniu, lyginamuoju aspektu, akcentuojant kompensacijų nusikaltimo aukoms problemą. Ketvirtojoje magistrinio darbo dalyje pateikti atkuriamojo teisingumo modelio integravimo į Lietuvos Respublikos baudžiamosios teisės sistemą būtinybė bei privalumai sprendžiant darbe analizuotas nusikalstamų veikų aukų problemas. / The Master‘s Thesis consists of four major parts. The first part introduces the description of crime victim. It includes the description of crime victim, analysis of the rapport between the crime victim and casualty. The second part includes the analysis of factors impacting people to believe various myths and stereotypes about the victims of crime and their negative influence on understanding the victimization is analyzed. The third part includes the analysis of legal status of crime victims, complex domestic and international analysis of legislation, tackling the problems of compensation. The fourth part is about restorative justice and its positive influence on solving some of the problems crime victims have to endure.

La distinction contemporaine n’a pu empêcher les responsabilités civile et pénale de cheminer vers un rapprochement pratique tant en droit français qu’iranien. Nous avons démontré qu’à la fonction réparatrice de la responsabilité civile peut s’additionner une fonction punitive qui s’incarnerait dans "la peine privée", et à la fonction répressive de la responsabilité pénale une fonction réparatrice appelée "restitution pénale". Grâce au prononcé des dommages et intérêts officiellement indemnitaires, mais objectivement punitifs, les juridictions parviennent à réprimer des comportements qu’elles estiment devoir sanctionner. Ainsi, l’officialisation de la peine privée ne paraît pas seulement possible, elle serait, aussi, extrêmement utile. Parallèlement, la responsabilité pénale, développe une dimension restitutive incontestable, permettant d’assurer notamment la réparation de tous les chefs de dommages soufferts par une victime ou encore supprimer la situation illicite. La restitution est donc utilisée comme un outil de répression. Greffée aux poursuites, elle se transforme en un moyen de désencombrement des juridictions et contractualisation du procès pénal. Intégrée à la peine, elle permet d’individualiser la sanction pénale. Les deux modes de responsabilités doivent se rejoindre dans une perspective de cohérence d’une responsabilité juridique afin que la justice soit rendue avec une dimension sociale. / The contemporary distinction did not prevent the civil and criminal liability to move toward a practical reconciliation in both French and Iranian law. We have show that restorative function of the civil liability can add up to a punitive function that is embodied the “private punishment” and the repressive function of criminal liability create a restorative function called “criminal restitution”. Through the pronouncement of damages officially compensated but objectively punitive, the Courts are able to repress behaviors which they consider to be punishable. Thus, the formalization of punitive damage seems not onlypossible, but also extremely useful. At the same time, criminal liability develops an undeniable restorative dimension, making it possible to ensure the repair of all the heads of damages suffered by a victim or to further discourage the illegal situation. The restitution is thus used as a tool for repression. Graft prosecution, it becomes a way of relieving the courts and contracting of the criminal trial. Incorporated into the sentence, it allows individualizing the criminal sanction. The two modes of liability must come together in a coherent perspective of legal liability so that justice is done with a social dimension.

Mémoire numérisé par la Division de la gestion de documents et des archives de l'Université de Montréal.

This doctoral thesis aims to provide an answer to the question of why the criminal law should be concerned with the emotional response of the offender. Emotions have important instrumental aptness, such as the capacity to reveal a person's values to himself. Emotional obligations can exist within friendship, and even between strangers when the basic duty of respect has been breached. Emotions therefore have important roles to play in connection to wrongful acts between fellow citizens. The emotions that are the most relevant to the committing of a wrong are guilt and shame. The thought content of guilt is responsibility for a wrong, while the thought content of shame focuses on a weakness of the self. In response to a wrong, guilt feelings distance the wrongdoer from the moral falsehood that was implicit in the offence, restoring relations with society. Shame might have similar beneficial effects, but it might also tie the wrongdoer closer to a personal weakness (which is only indirectly related to the wrong) and might therefore weaken the relationship with himself and society. Preventing undesirable behavior is an aim of criminal law. Good criminal law should aim to persuade offenders to endorse the legal rule that was flouted by the offence. The law is not a suitable basis for citizen's emotional obligations, but emotions are particularly capable of allowing an offender to properly recognise certain reasons for obeying the law, such as moral reasons and reasons of respect for law. Guilt feelings in a setting of victim-offender mediation are very promising in this respect, while shame and humiliation run the risk of distancing the offender from his regard of himself as a moral person and society at large.

Trend of declining crime rates in recent years, on the other hand rising recidivism raises many questions for the existing criminal justice system. High return to prison gives the impression that the purpose of a sentence of custodial sentence lose at the beginning of the third millennium its meaning. The challenge not only for the state apparatus, but the whole society is more than ever becoming reintegration of offenders, which is a predictor of risk of recidivism. The aim of this thesis is therefore description and evaluation aspects of the process of social reintegration, taking into account current possibilities to prevent reoffending. Empirical part extends the intention of re-socialization efforts charting selection of innovative programs in social work with offenders. Theoretical material consists of key concepts weighing the Criminology and Penology, which is completed at the end of work formulating recommendations for social work with offenders as a possible guide changes in the life of each individual offender.