This thesis discusses the peacemaking potential of Native justice initiatives within the context of Canadian criminal justice. Like peacemaking which rose as a revitalization of peace and non-violence within criminology and its concerns, Native justice initiatives can be viewed as a revitalization movement which has risen in response to the injustice of the criminal process for Native people. By offering alternatives to criminal justice or healing approaches within the structure of the conventional criminal process, Native justice initiatives seek to provide healing and restoration and a meaningful delivery of justice to Native people in conflict with the law. The peacemaking potential of such alternatives lies in the observation that the current euro-based structure of criminal justice is foreign to the traditional spiritual and social understanding of Native people. The tragic consequence of this incompatibility is the overincarceration of Native people and the failure of conventional correctional programming to help them. The offering of a process which is sensitive to the needs of Native people in conflict with the law is a move toward peace and social justice within the Canadian criminal justice system which provides an illustration of how Peacemaking may be achieved. This thesis proposes that Native Justice Initiatives facilitate a healing process between Native people and the criminal justice process and do not represent a full restoration to health. Deep healing for Native people in conflict with the law will require an ongoing process of understanding and accommodation both within the realm of criminal justice and society in general. (Abstract shortened by UMI.)
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:uottawa.ca/oai:ruor.uottawa.ca:10393/9511 |
| Date | January 1997 |
| Creators | Gulati, Shruti Gola. |
| Contributors | Petrunik, M., |
| Publisher | University of Ottawa (Canada) |
| Source Sets | Université d’Ottawa |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
| Format | 142 p. |
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