Throughout Latin America and the world, countries, states and municipalities are showing increased interest in restorative justice and restorative practices as effective alternatives to working with criminal offenders.
Restorative practices can also be used day to day by anyone who engages with criminal offenders, including police, probation officers, prison guards, judges, prosecutors, defense attorneys, community sentence supervisors and others in adult and juvenile justice.
Restorative practices:
- hold individuals accountable for their actions.
- empower individuals causing harm to take responsibility for their behavior.
- enable persons causing harm to hear directly from the people they’ve affected.
- increase satisfaction and reduce trauma for victims and other affected family and community.
- provide opportunities for the entire affected community to decide how to repair the harm caused and hold offenders accountable.
- break cycles of wrongdoing and misbehavior.
- can be used in conjunction with current justice systems.
- save money.
- truly resolve conflicts.
IIRP Latin America has conducted trainings:
- in Costa Rica, where the justice system has started a Center for Restorative Justice and uses restorative conferences to address specific crimes both in the adult and juvenile justice systems.
- in Peru, where corrections officials in the national penitentiaries conduct circles and restorative conferences in prisons.
- in Brazil, Mexico, Columbia and Bolivia for police, judges, prosecutors and public defenders.
To learn more about our work with justice systems, email us today.