Retributive, restorative justice application in Plateau State

THE challenges of Peace, security and conflict have bedeviled Plateau State for the better part of the last two decades. The impact of the protracted conflict and orchestrated attacks on communities has been quite huge and profound. Several people have been displaced from their communities, especially women, children and the aged.

In the quest to evolve lasting solutions to the protracted conflict, many commentators have repeatedly called for the dispensation of justice as a bedrock upon which sustainable peace can be attained. This call has given prominence to the mantra: “there can never be peace without justice”. This phrase keepsreverberating at formal and informal discourses that seek to explore pathways to sustainable peace on the Plateau.

Against this background, the Plateau Peace Building Agency (PPBA), which was set up in 2016 by the Rt. Hon. Simon Bako Lalong administration through an Act of legislationhas made several frantic attempts at various fora to clarify some ideas about the justice system administration and its impact on the Peace building process in the state and elsewhere.

What kind of justice are we talking about? This question will lead us to the conceptual clarification of some typologies of the justice system and its workings in conflict resolution and Peace building.

Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve. The interpretation of what then constitutes “deserving” is being impacted by numerous fields, with many divergingpoints of view and perspectives, including the concepts of moral correctness based on ethics, rationality, law, religion, equity and fairness. The state will sometimes endeavour to increase justice by operating courts and enforcing their rulings. Consequently, the application of justice differs in every culture. And it is also important to note that in the annals of evolution and conceptualization or development of the concept, time and events are two variables that have always influenced and modified the application of justice.

Therefore, there are different types of the justice system: distributive (determining who gets what), procedural (determining how fairly people are treated), retributive (based on punishment for wrong-doing), and restorative (which tries to transform the situation and restore broken relationships), Relational justice seeks to examine the connections between individuals and focuses on their relations in societies, concerning how these relationships are established and organised. In a normative view, this focus includes an understanding of what these relations should be. In a political vista, this focus is on the method of organising persons in society. However, our focus is on retributive and restorative justice systems as it concerns the Peaceful resolutions of the long standing issues of conflict in Plateau State while ensuring that new ones were prevented from emerging.

What is Retributive Justice?

Retributive Justice is a system of criminal justice based on the punishment of offenders, wrongdoers or criminals according to the laws of society rather than on rehabilitation.The main central theme of retributive justice is as follows: state and community set punishments; the offender is held accountable through punishment; crime is an individual act with individual responsibility; it is believed that threats of punishment deter crime, and punishment changes behavior; victims are peripheral to the process; and, deficits define the offender.

Others are: the focus is on the past and establishing blame or guilt; emphasis on the adversarial relationship between victims and offenders; imposition of pain to punish and deter/prevent; community on the sideline, represented abstractly by the state; the response focused on the offender’s past behavior and, dependent upon proxy professionals (police, lawyers, judges etc.).

From the foregoing, one would wonder if justice is truly achieved in our retributive justice system from the characteristics listed above. For justice to be achieved, the victim must feel it, as it does not imply incarceration or punishment alone but emphasizes; victims’ satisfaction, healing, peace of mind, restitution, rehabilitation, and reintegration.

What is Restorative Justice?

Restorative justice is a form of criminal justice that focuses on rehabilitating offenders through reconciliation with victims and the community at large as against punishment. It seeks to restore the broken relationship rather than punishing offenders. The theory emphasizes repairing the harm caused by criminal behaviour. It is an approach to justice in which responses to a crime is to organise a meeting/dialogue between the victim and the offender. Restorative practice allows people affected by crime to communicate with the person responsible, often with the aim of a face to face meeting or direct conversation.

The Restorative Justice system also lays emphasis on addressing the problems caused by a criminal conduct than trial and punishment of the offender. It is an approach which ensures that the interests of major stakeholders in the crime are well addressed and protected. With restorative justice, the victim, the offender and the community all participate in the crime disposal process. Basically, the victim gets succor from encounter as much as can be reasonably achieved; the offender is effectively reintegrated back into the community of responsible citizens; and the community is restored to normalcy.

Suffice to note that there are historical evidences which suggests that African indigenous communities, had a preference for the peaceful settlement of disputes along the lines prescribed by the institutions and values of the community. Restorative practices in these societies were carried out through their traditional institutions or by the individuals trying to reach a compromise by negotiation on their own. An old Bantu proverb states that “We brought the needle to sew the torn social fabric, not the knife to cut it.”

Our contemporary religions have also espoused the tenets of restorative justice; The Bible in Exodus 22:1-13 succinctly outlined some religious tenets that should be followed in the application of Restorative Justice. In the same vein, the Quran also has practices that conform to the tenets of restorative justice. The Islamic practice of Diyya and Sohland. In Diyya, the offender agrees to monetary payment to the victim, while Sohl is a negotiated reconciliation. Both practices are done in the presence of a WaliAmr (appointed guardian).

It has been estimated that about 80 countries utilize some form of restorative justice. In 1986, the UN General Assembly made the Declaration of Basic Principles of Justice for Victims of Crime and Abuse of Power in 1986. In 1999, the UN Economic and Social Council, (ECOSOC)1 in its resolution, “Development and implementation of mediation and restorative justice measures in criminal justice”, it asked the Commission on Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice to consider formulating United Nations standards in the field of mediation and restorative justice. In 2000, the General Assembly also made the Vienna Declaration on Crime and Justice on “Meeting the Challenges of the Twenty-first Century”. The United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders2, discussed restorative justice extensively under the agenda titled “Offenders and Victims: Accountability and Fairness in the Justice Process”.

In South Africa, Community Peace Committees were formed to assume responsibility for crime prevention and resolution in localities where there was little confidence in the justice system. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission is also another agency that was set up by the South African government to help deal with the effect of the apartheid era.

APPROACHES OF PLATEAU STATE GOVERNMENT TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEM OF PEACE AND SECURITY THROUGH THE JUSTICE SYSTEM.

The incumbent government of Plateau State under the leadership of Rt. Hon Simon Bako Lalong has since upon assumption into office on May 29, 2015, left no one in doubt of her commitment to deliver on the promise of Peace and security. It is against this background that the government has “Peace, Security and Good Governance” as the first leg of the tripod policy thrust of the administration.

To achieve this noble agenda, the government has adopted several policy measures taking into cognisance our peculiar context as well as the exigencies of time and space to respond to the challenges of peace and security through the justice system. Some of the approaches we will focus on essentially are those that falls within the purview of retributive and restorative justice system and these include the following:

1. The anti-kidnapping, anti-land grabbing, cultism and other anti-violence related matters law:The Plateau state anti-kidnapping, anti-land grabbing, cultism and other anti-violence related matters law is meant toaddress unlawful land grabbing, rising spate of kidnapping, cultism and other violent crimes in the state. According to governor Simon Bako Lalong while signing the law in December 2020, “The anti-kidnapping, anti-land grabbing, cultism and other anti-violence related matters law is due because of the increase in kidnapping and other violent crimes in the state. “As a responsible government, we cannot fold our arms and watch our people terrorised by criminals, who are clearly out to cause mayhem.This law will deal with anyone caught in the act and I urge security agencies to be on their toes and ensure that culprits are apprehended and made to face the law,” Lalong said.

Providing a brief description of the law, the Solicitor-General of the state and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Justice, Mrs Rauta Dakop said the law sought to prohibit any person or group of persons from forcible takeover of landed property belonging to either a citizen or government.

1. Procurement/Donation of 50 patrol vehicles and 200 security motorcycles and other support to security agencies: The donation of these patrol equipment or gadgets are meant to complement the efforts of security agencies on timely respond to early warnings and distress calls in complex emergencies. The gesture according to Governor Lalong, was necessary especially as peace and security are key components of his administration.

iii.            The inauguration of 592 Community Police Constables: It would be recalled that sometimes in December 2020, the Plateau State government inaugurated 592 community police constables trained by the government to further compliment the work of the conventional security personnel to improve security in our communities.

The Administration of Criminal Justice Law Plateau State (ACJL 2018):It was sometime in 2018 that the Executive Governor of Plateau State Rt Hon. Simon Bako Lalong signed into law the Administration of Criminal Justice Law 2018. The Administration of Criminal Justice Law of Plateau State introduces fundamental improvements with a view to promoting efficient management of criminal justice institutions, speedy justice dispensation, safeguarding of the society from crime, and protection of the rights and interests of the suspect and the victim. One of the high points of the new law is that henceforth, all crimes committed in Plateau State including all criminal suspects involved in serial killings in the state will be tried within the state.

The governor expressed optimism that the decision “has put an end to the transfer of criminal suspects to Abuja for prosecution.According to him, the ACJL has “reinforced the framework for the effective prosecution of criminal cases in the state (Jos).”

1. Ranching policy proposal: Similarly, the Plateau State government in 2016 made public its desire to experiment the ranching system of animal production in some parts of the state. The decision by the State government to consider adopting the policy is as a result of its expected economic and security benefits. In conceiving the ranching proposal, government anticipated benefits for economic empowerment, increased income and employment, and as a means of ensuring peace and stability through reduced farmer herdsmen clashes particularly in anticipation of the aspect of the policy that will ensure the regulation of cattle movement in the state. However, the proposed policy idea was greeted with controversy in some quarters leading to street protest in some parts of Jos metropolis.

The government then adopted the National Livestock Transformation Plan, NLTP of the Federal government which is designed as a response to the seemingly insoluble conflict between farmers and herders across the country.

Vi. Federal Government directive to establish Mobile Police Barracks in Gashish:Although this directive is yet to see the light of day, however, the governor of Plateau state reminded the Inspector General of Police Ibrahim Baba during the donation of patrol vehicles and security motorcycles to security agencies on the need for its speedy implementation as it will go a long way in addressing the challenges of peace and security in the state.

These law backed policy responses are some of the state government’s effort aimed at strengthening the retributive justice system as part of a broader strategy to deliver on the promise of peace and security across the state.

The restorative component of the justice system of the Plateau State government include the following:

1. Setting up the Plateau Peace Building Agency: There is no gainsaying that the PPBA has been criticized at several fora for not doing enough to promote the cause of justice in its quest to foster peace in the state. The question therefore suffices: what kind of justice is the PPBA agitating for? Retributive justice or restorative justice? Does PPBA has the mandate to provide justice? Is it the role of PPBA to provide or give justice, and what kind of justice falls within the purview of PPBA? Of course, PPBA as a dedicated structure for conflict prevention and peacebuilding is by law and by its operational principle empowered or has the mandate to provide justice as far as the issues of peace and conflict are concerned in Plateau state. Having said that, what kind of justice therefore does PPBA pursues? PPBA has the mandate to pursue only Restorative Justice.

The Plateau State Peace Building Agency (PPBA) was created by an act of legislation of the Plateau State House of Assembly and signed by the Executive Governor of Plateau State Rt Hon Simon Bako Lalong on February 2, 2016 as a dedicated framework for conflict prevention and peace building. The mandate of the Agency is essentially to transform the conflict situation of the state by promoting the culture of peace and harmonious coexistence among the diverse ethnic and religious groups that make up the state.

This mandate is to be achieved through dialogue, mediation, research, advocacy, peace education, strategic peace communication and strategic partnership with a wide range of stakeholders.

Joseph Lengmang, Director General, Plateau Peace Building Agency