PEN3701
Assignment 3
QUESTION 1
Define the concept “restorative justice” in your own words.
[5]
QUESTION 2
Describe in your own words what the African concept of ubuntu means and how ubuntu
is linked with restorative justice.
[10]
QUESTION 3
Explain how both the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 and the Correctional Services
Act 111 of 1998 deal with aspects of restorative justice.
[12]
QUESTION 4
In 2004, Cabinet approved a Service Charter for Victims of Crime in South Africa
(Victims’ Charter) and Minimum Standards on Services for Victims of Crime (Minimum
Standards). Both are considered as important strategies for promoting the rights of
victims in the criminal justice system. Explain why you think these strategies are in line
with the basic concepts of restorative justice and regarded as significant steps towards
making the criminal justice system more victim-orientated.
[20]
QUESTION 5
Describe the restoration of relationships as a principle of restorative justice in
corrections.
[8]
QUESTION 6
Discuss victim-offender mediation (VOM) as a restorative justice intervention most
commonly practised in the corrections environment.
[15]
TOTAL: 70 MARKS
, Question 1
Restorative justice is a method of resolving conflicts through which perpetrators are
held accountable for their acts, the harm they have caused to victims is addressed,
and the community engages for rehabilitation and forgiveness to occur.
Question 2
Crime is viewed as something that hurts communities, offenders, and victims. The
criminal justice system should work to mend and rebuild strained relationships in the
spirit of Ubuntu. The majority of South Africans are in favour of the African idea of
Ubuntu. It is an aspect of traditional culture and is expressed in indigenous
customary systems. Like restorative justice, these systems prioritised a group-based
approach to conflict resolution and saw the law as a tool to safeguard group interests
rather than a means of self-defence. The African idea of ubuntu, which serves as the
foundation of the current South African Constitution, is the philosophy of humanity
that underlies the traditional view of justice.
Ubuntu is a culture that emphasises community and communality to some extent. It
acknowledges that a person is a human being with the right to unwavering respect,
dignity, value, and acceptance from the people in the community to which they
belong. But it also implies the inverse. The person has a responsibility to treat every
member of the community with the same respect, decency, value, and acceptance.
More crucially, it controls the exercise of rights by emphasising responsibility-sharing
and equal access to rights for all. The African idea of ubuntu is crucial to restorative
justice because it promotes human rights, which are essential to comprehending
restorative justice, as well as reconciliation. It is a method of interacting with others
as well as a method of handling and resolving conflict. Crime is viewed as an act that
hurts communities, offenders, and victims. The criminal justice system should work
to mend and restore strained relationships in the spirit of Ubuntu. The basic ideals of
equality, human dignity, and the support of human rights and liberties are where the
principles of Ubuntu aim to find expression.
Question 3
"Complainant" and "victim" are interchangeable phrases. The Service Charter for
Victims of Crime in South Africa (2004) and the Minimum Standards for Services for
Victims of Crime refer to a victim, but the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 and the
Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 refer to a complainant .There is no distinction
between these terms, although in some quarters, the word "victim" is seen as
dehumanising individuals who have been harmed by criminal activity. Some people
prefer the phrase "survivors of crime," but the definition found in the Victims' Charter
is what matters (Department of Correctional Services, [Sa-a]). Any mention of a
victim also refers to the complainant or a victim's descendant. Anyone who has been
a victim of one of the offences listed in section 299A of Criminal Procedure Act 51 of
1977 is considered a complainant.
Assignment 3
QUESTION 1
Define the concept “restorative justice” in your own words.
[5]
QUESTION 2
Describe in your own words what the African concept of ubuntu means and how ubuntu
is linked with restorative justice.
[10]
QUESTION 3
Explain how both the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 and the Correctional Services
Act 111 of 1998 deal with aspects of restorative justice.
[12]
QUESTION 4
In 2004, Cabinet approved a Service Charter for Victims of Crime in South Africa
(Victims’ Charter) and Minimum Standards on Services for Victims of Crime (Minimum
Standards). Both are considered as important strategies for promoting the rights of
victims in the criminal justice system. Explain why you think these strategies are in line
with the basic concepts of restorative justice and regarded as significant steps towards
making the criminal justice system more victim-orientated.
[20]
QUESTION 5
Describe the restoration of relationships as a principle of restorative justice in
corrections.
[8]
QUESTION 6
Discuss victim-offender mediation (VOM) as a restorative justice intervention most
commonly practised in the corrections environment.
[15]
TOTAL: 70 MARKS
, Question 1
Restorative justice is a method of resolving conflicts through which perpetrators are
held accountable for their acts, the harm they have caused to victims is addressed,
and the community engages for rehabilitation and forgiveness to occur.
Question 2
Crime is viewed as something that hurts communities, offenders, and victims. The
criminal justice system should work to mend and rebuild strained relationships in the
spirit of Ubuntu. The majority of South Africans are in favour of the African idea of
Ubuntu. It is an aspect of traditional culture and is expressed in indigenous
customary systems. Like restorative justice, these systems prioritised a group-based
approach to conflict resolution and saw the law as a tool to safeguard group interests
rather than a means of self-defence. The African idea of ubuntu, which serves as the
foundation of the current South African Constitution, is the philosophy of humanity
that underlies the traditional view of justice.
Ubuntu is a culture that emphasises community and communality to some extent. It
acknowledges that a person is a human being with the right to unwavering respect,
dignity, value, and acceptance from the people in the community to which they
belong. But it also implies the inverse. The person has a responsibility to treat every
member of the community with the same respect, decency, value, and acceptance.
More crucially, it controls the exercise of rights by emphasising responsibility-sharing
and equal access to rights for all. The African idea of ubuntu is crucial to restorative
justice because it promotes human rights, which are essential to comprehending
restorative justice, as well as reconciliation. It is a method of interacting with others
as well as a method of handling and resolving conflict. Crime is viewed as an act that
hurts communities, offenders, and victims. The criminal justice system should work
to mend and restore strained relationships in the spirit of Ubuntu. The basic ideals of
equality, human dignity, and the support of human rights and liberties are where the
principles of Ubuntu aim to find expression.
Question 3
"Complainant" and "victim" are interchangeable phrases. The Service Charter for
Victims of Crime in South Africa (2004) and the Minimum Standards for Services for
Victims of Crime refer to a victim, but the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 and the
Correctional Services Act 111 of 1998 refer to a complainant .There is no distinction
between these terms, although in some quarters, the word "victim" is seen as
dehumanising individuals who have been harmed by criminal activity. Some people
prefer the phrase "survivors of crime," but the definition found in the Victims' Charter
is what matters (Department of Correctional Services, [Sa-a]). Any mention of a
victim also refers to the complainant or a victim's descendant. Anyone who has been
a victim of one of the offences listed in section 299A of Criminal Procedure Act 51 of
1977 is considered a complainant.
