Mediation for Reparation: The Victim's Perspective

Restorative Justice for Victims of Crime: A Victim-Oriented Approach to Restorative Justice

“…In order to appeal to victims' sense of justice, it is important that mediators be perceived as neutral (Aertsen and Peters, 1998;Tyler, 2000). Mediators, like judges and other third parties in dispute resolution, must be unbiased (Wemmers, 1996).…”

Legal and Practical Perspectives on Victim/Offender Mediation in Austria and Germany

“…However, the actual order mirrors the legal character of VOM that is, by its procedural nature, an offender-related instrument as far as it is up to the offender to be the active part: without making at least serious efforts to restore the victim none of the legal provisions to benefit pro-victim behaviour to be set by the offender are applicable, neither in Germany nor in Austria. There is one further practical consequence: due to this procedural nature of VOM, the offender is approached prior to the victim in both countries (see, for the pros and cons of this order from the victimological point of view, Aertsen and Peters, 1998) since the legal consequences for the offender are liable independent from the victim's readiness to participate in mediation. 26 The relevant provisions dealing with VOM are Art 6 to 9 of the Austrian Juvenile Justice Act [Jugendgerichtsgesetz -JGG].…”

“…Case selection based on the age of the offender denies access to the majority of victims from the outset. Moreover, application or nonapplication of restorative justice procedures based solely on offender-related criteria ignores all victim advantages inherent to restorative justice (see Aertsen and Peters, 1998;Masters, 1998;Walgrave and Aertsen, 1996). 310 …”

“…Aertsen and Peters speak of mediation as a 'global experience' for the victim (ibid.). For many of them, even indirect settlements, avoiding a personal confrontation with their victimizers, seem to be a form of mediation that is 'sufficient' to ensure victim satisfaction (Masters, 1998;Aertsen and Peters, 1998). From the theoretical point of view, mediation is based upon the tripolar model of interaction mentioned before, combining vertical communication between the prosecution authorities and both parties directly involved in the victimizing event (victim and offender) with a horizontal dialogue between the parties to the conflict (see also Aetsen and Peters, 1998;p.…”

Víctimas en justicia restaurativa: ¿sujetos activos o en necesidad? Un estudio europeo desde la perspectiva de operadores sociales

“…En concreto, es una práctica estrictamente voluntaria que permite a la víctima entablar un diálogo (directo o indirecto) con el ofensor y confrontarlo con el impacto del delito, expresar emociones, hacer preguntas para entender la experiencia vivida ("¿por qué yo? "), escuchar las explicaciones de la otra parte y "ver" sus expresiones de remordimiento (Aertsen & Peters, 1998;Latimer et al, 2005;Morris, Maxwell, & Robertson,1993;Rugge & Cormier, 2003;Shapland et al, 2007;Sherman & Strang, 2007;Umbreit, 1994;Umbreit, Coates, & Vos, 2004;Wemmers & Canuto, 2002). El proceso también permite a la víctima formar parte de la toma de decisiones, ya que las partes involucradas en el proceso (víctima, ofensor y, en ocasiones, comunidad) discuten maneras en las que el daño puede ser reparado.…”