Pragmatic abolitionism? Defining the complex relationship between restorative justice and prisons

ABSTRACT

This article explores the diverging positions regarding the relationship between restorative justice (RJ) and prisons through a review of the theoretical literature and a comprehensive presentation of practical experiences. Additionally, a twofold characterisation of the RJ movement is provided and a specific proposal for criminal policy is suggested. In the first part, the views of those who hold that RJ and prison are incompatible are discussed and their reasons are presented. In the second part, the views of those who think that RJ can be used to improve prisons are explored and some of the projects that are using RJ in prisons around the world are examined. Finally, it is argued that RJ is both a moderately abolitionist and pragmatic movement and needs to establish priorities for action. It is concluded that the use of RJ in prison must be preceded by a significant reduction in the current incarcerated population.

KEYWORDS:

• abolitionism
• pragmatism
• prisons
• restorative justice

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Zinsstag et al. (2011: 25) cited the works of Walgrave and Daly, which identified ‘several interconnected influences on RJ movement such as prisoners’ rights movement, women's movement, civil rights movement, victims’ movement, communitarianism, abolitionist movement, indigenous peoples’ movement, and other more specific critiques coming from the strand of critical criminology’. Later on, in the same text, they add:

It was indeed social movement activists affiliated with different movements who best expressed concerns over the elevated levels of incarceration of offenders and an under-appreciation of victims’ experiences. Some of the major streams of academic work in the area, as identified by Daly (1998; see also Daly & Immarigeon, 1998), were: informal justice, abolitionism, reintegrative shaming, psychological (affect and script) theories of emotions and their influence in procedural justice in the legal process; feminist theories of justice; peacemaking criminology; philosophical theories on criminal justice; and religious and spiritual theories on justice practices.

2 Christie does not support the complete abolition of the criminal justice system but argues that punishment should be reduced as much as possible. For this reason, some consider him a ‘moderate abolitionist’ (Achutti, 2014: 118).

3 The Oxford Online Dictionary (2016) defines pragmatic as ‘dealing with things sensibly and realistically in a way that is based on practical rather than theoretical considerations’. In this sense, RJ thinkers and activists have taken a pragmatic approach to the question of imprisonment by working inside prisons even though theoretically they are opposed to prison principles. In the last part of my article I will contend that nowadays it would be more pragmatic and sensible to work towards reducing the prison population through diversionary, restorative measures.

4 The rehabilitation model is the norm in Western society. This model promotes the reintegration of the offender into the community. For instance, the European Prison Rules set out that ‘all detention shall be managed so as to facilitate the reintegration into free society of persons who have been deprived of their liberty’ (Article 6). If RJ is to provide an alternative to the management of imprisonment, special consideration for victims of crime and the concepts of reparation, restoration and active responsibility should be taken into account.

5 I have selected programmes that are cited by more than one author. The full list of projects is available upon request.