Restorative Justice Centre Holds Interactive Session With 15 Magistrates.

The following, were in attendance at the first interactive-training session at the Restorative Justice  Ccentre, Gudu, Abuja, held on Thursday 5th of December, 2024;
15 magistrate.
Registrar general.Dr.U Abbas.
Director of the center (AMDC) Mr. Sallaudeen Abdullateef.
Restorative Justice coordinator, Mrs. Miriam selai  Selai Kombo-Ezeh.
Resource person:DR Ozioma Izouka.
Overview of Restorative Justice by Mrs. Miriam  Selai Kombo-Ezeh, Head of FCT Restorative Unit of AMDC. Gudu
PARADIGM SHIFT TO RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AND IMPORTANCE OF REFERRAL FROM THE MAGISTRATE COURTS TO THE FCT RJ CENTRE.
Restorative Justice offers a new understanding of crime. Unlike retributive justice which centers on punishing the offender, restorative justice considers the victim, the impacted communities and even the offender. This is so different that we use the word paradigm shift.
The 4 Rs of restorative justice are:

1. Reconciliation–of the victim and the offender
2. Restitution-Section 319 to 328 of ACJA 2015-victim compensation
3. Reintegration-S.453, 460, 461 and 468 of ACJA 2015 all talk about noncustodial alternatives. To make it work effectively all of here must working collaboration
4. Restoration-restoring the society into being safe again as crime distorts the harmony in the society.

Lagos took the lead but with the documents produced by the technical committee of about three of your worships were part of, we improved on what Lagos had. We also understudied RJ in Lagos.The RJ center was placed under the supervision of the FCT High Court despite the opposition of the FMOJ. Reasons for placing it under the AMDC is for the following reasons;

1. There is already in place an ADR structure in the Abuja Multi-Door
   Courthouse
2. There are already trained mediators who can serve as facilitators in RJ
   Victim offender mediation(VOM), and other RJ forms
3. Being under the FCT Judiciary will not only give it legitimacy but also the trust of the public.

4. It will be easier to refer matters for RJ to the RJ center being a court connected ADR part of the High Court than to an outside agency.
We are here now with all the necessary legal backing and documents to start RJ in the FCT but there must be synergy and coordination between us all here else it wont work.
The essence of this meeting is for us to put heads together and chart the way to ensure that cases suitable for RJ are sent to the center. In doing that we must also consider the following:

1. Repairing the harm will be our key objective for every case brought before the RI center.
2. Before referring any case to the RJ Centre, there must be genuineness of the offender to repair the harm. There must be remorse.
3. In exercising your discretion to refer for RJ, you should not compromise rights under the law or be discriminatory.
4. We must take into consideration safety of the community, the victim, and even the offender. Also the capacity of the offender to fulfill any RJ agreement reached.

The success of this largely depend on the magistrates and us at the AMDC.
Abuja being the capital, we ought to be in the lead The speaker will speak on the referral parts.

I thank each and every one of us here. It shows our commitment to make this programme succeed.