RESTORATIVE JUSTICE AS AN ALTERNATIVE CRIMINAL DISPUTE RESOLUTION FOR THE OFFENCE OF THEFT
Abstract
Under the
traditional justice system, theft is an offence against a state. Once the
offender is found guilty by the court, he will be punished accordingly. In
Malaysia, the Penal Code provides punishment for an offence of theft with
imprisonment for a term not exceeding 7 years, or fine or with both. The aim is
to punish the offender for the offence that he had committed, while the victim
has no place in the process. However, restorative justice sees a crime is
against an individual which allows the offender to be direct accountability
against the victim. In other words, instead of punishing the offender for an
offence done, the offender has to repair the harm suffered by the victim such
as by paying compensation or in case of theft restore the stolen property to
the victim. Islamic law has implemented restorative justice long time ago to
allow certain criminal cases to be resolved between the parties, provided that
the case has not been reached to the authority. Restorative justice has been recognized
internationally by the United Nation, which encourages criminal cases which are
minor in nature, such as theft, vandalism, and hurt to be resolved through the restorative
justice process. As such, many countries have implemented restorative justice,
such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Australia and New Zealand.
Restorative justice can be considered as an alternative to the traditional
justice system which allows the offender and the victim resolve criminal
offence with the assistance of a neutral third party out of court. For
instance, in the offence of theft, instead of punishing the offender, the case
can be resolved if the offender agrees to seek forgiveness and returns the
stolen item or pays compensation to the victim, and the victim agrees to
reintegrate the accused into the society. Thus, this research aims to examine
the law of Malaysia that governs the offence and the punishment of theft. This
research also analyses how restorative justice is implemented under the United
Nation and Islamic law. It is suggested that the Malaysian law that governs the
offence of theft to be improvised so that the parties may opt to resolve
criminal cases through restorative justice.
Keywords
References
- Baljit Singh Sidhu. (2011). Criminal Litigation Process. Malaysia: Sweet & Maxwell Asia. Bazemore, S. (2003). Juvenile Justice Reform and Restorative Justice: Building Theory and Policy from Practice. Portland: Willian Publishing. David, S.,& Michael, B. (2006). Mediation Law and Practice. New York: Cambridge University Press. Heather, S. (2004). Repair or Revenge: Victims and Restorative Justice. Oxford: Clarendon Press. Lo, T.C. (2016). Tesco offers shoplifter a job.http://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/03/15/tesco-offers-shoplifter-a-job-mans-dire-situation-touched-our-hearts/. Margarita, Z. (2007). Restorative Justice: Ideals and Realities. England: Ashgate Publishing Limited. Mark, S. U., &Marilyn, P. A. (2010).Restorative Justice Dialogue: An Essential Guide for Research and Practice. (New York: Springer Publishing Company. Mohamad Shariff Abu Samah, Asidah bt Mohd. Ali. (2012). Alman Criminal Law In Malaysia. Selangor: International Law Book Series. Robert, A. J., & Laura, J. M. (2010). The Victims of Crim. USA: Prantice Hall. Susan, B. L. (2009). California Civil Litigation. United States of America: Delmare Cengage Learning. The Borneo Post. (2016). Duo jailed for Milo theft. http://www.theborneopost.com/2016/04/23/duo-jailed-for-milo-theft/. The Malay Mail. (2016). Mother and daughter caught for stealing packets of Nescafe coffee. http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/mother-and-daughter-caught-for-stealing-packets-of-nescafe-coffee. The Star. (2016). Woman gets a day’s jail for stealing Milo. http://www.thestar.com.my/news/nation/2016/03/03/woman-gets-a-days-jail-for-stealing-milo/
Details
Primary Language
English
Subjects
-
Journal Section
Research Article
Authors
Norjihan Ab Aziz
Malaysia
Noorshuhadawati Mohamad Amin
Malaysia
Zuraini Ab Hamid
Malaysia
Publication Date
April 30, 2017
Submission Date
June 8, 2017
Acceptance Date
April 18, 2017
Published in Issue
Year 2017 Volume: 3 Number: 7