Re: MAUSICA WEEKLY EMAILS

2013-Jan-11-0759Hrs

Dear Errol,

I have been following the Machel debate with a great deal of interest. I had decided to keep my views to myself but now, as so often happens, I feel a responsibility to put in my five cents, as justice is something close to my heart and my life's work. I am a parent, a lawyer, an educator, a consultant and a trainer. Most of you know that I resigned my well-paying job in the Bahamas to return home and most of my friends think I am crazy to do this, given the state of the world economy. I have been unemployed for going on five months. It is an act of faith. At the end of this month, I am conducting a course in Facilitiating Restorative Conferences. You may be thinking all of this irrelevant to the Machel discussion. It is not. Scratchie,you have written advocating restorative justice. I clipped and kept that article because it resonated with me, having received training in this area and I was in the process of receiving additional training. What should happen in the Machel Montano case is restorative justice. Restorative justice asks the question: How can we repair the harm to the victim and restore his well-being as well as that of the wrong-doer? The criminal justice system sees crime as a crime against the state, whereas restorative justice sees a crime as a wrong done to a victim and the community. A restorative justice conference brings together in a structured meeting, facilitated by a trained facilitator, the wrongdoer and his supporters or community and the victim and his community and they decide how the harm is to be repaired. The conference can happen only when the wrongdoer admits that he has done wrong and is willing to make amends. It brings about healing and peace in a society. It is happening all over the world now. It is being used in workplaces, families, communities, schools  and in the justice system. I do not know if any of you read the New York Times Magazine article last week of the restorative justice session that took place in Florida between the 19 year-old murderer and the parents of his victim, his 19-year old fiancee, whom he had shot in the head after a long -drawn out quarrell. Scratchie and Maria are both right, but both are looking at the issue through defective lens, that of the wrongdoer or victim. We must consider the need to restore the well-being of both sides,their families,the community.All are affected by this crime. This matter must be carefully handled. The implications are huge. I would offer my services free in this case, but then I might be accused of interfering in the administration of justice. I suggest we say a prayer for God to guide the magistrate in this case, for Machel and his family, and for the government to send key persons to my course at the Arouca Pastoral Centre on January 30-31.

Peace to all,

Hazel Thompson-Ahye