The Restorative Justice Act (Chapter 516) came into force on 27 January, 2012 with the publication of Legal Notice 43. The Act has paved the way for providing greater opportunities to prisoners to reform their lives during their stay at the Corradino Correctional Facility, while retaining the punitive element for offenders
The law is clearly not aimed at granting inmates early release from prison but to ensure that within the Corradino Correctional Facility, any inmate who is willing to reform is given the possibility to do so. With this principle in mind, the government undertook a variety of initiatives to change the structures and mechanisms that were in place at the facility prior to the introduction of this law. These new measures, which are based on the concepts of parole, remission and the possibility of a presidential pardon, hinge on two main conditions, namely the inmate reform and the voluntary active participation by the victims of crime in the whole process.
The process, which led to the publication of the Bill for restorative justice in January 2011 and the eventual approval as an Act of Parliament in December of last year, was exhaustive but interesting, challenging, and equally useful and indispensable. It was officially initiated in February 2009 with the publication of the ‘White Paper on Restorative Justice’, followed by a four-month public consultation process. During this period, a task force, headed by Mr Joe Gerada, was set up and assigned the specific role of meeting with interested stakeholders and evaluating a number of proposals that were submitted either by post or by e-mail. At the end of this process the Task Force drew up a report that was published in that year; it served as the basis for the Bill which was subsequently published in January 2011.
This long and arduous process was essential, considering that the new law was a major step gradually taking our country from a punitive to a restorative justice system. In fact, this law is also introducing parole, which provides for a prisoner’s early release from the facility under a number of conditions. The conditions are applicable in cases where (i) an inmate seeks to be granted parole, in which case he or she must, during his or her stay at the facility, follow a tailor-made care and rehabilitative programme devised by the competent authorities, and (ii) an inmate seeks release from custody, in which case he or she must abide by the conditions imposed upon him or her by the Parole Board.
Before the law came into force, remission was awarded exclusively to the inmate on the grounds of good conduct during the course of his or her stay at the facility. The Restorative Justice Act has introduced a major change to this former practice by increasing the conditions with which an inmate seeking early release must now comply. Therefore, even in cases of remission, the inmate must follow a care and rehabilitative programme and provide verifiable and tangible evidence that he or she has really reformed in order to earn it.
Naturally, such a radical change could not be implemented without a thorough consultation process and a strategic plan for restructuring the department responsible for the correctional system.
In fact, the restorative justice system follows reforms in the Corradino Correctional Facility that the ministry has undertaken in recent years. It is based on the recommendations of the Inquiry Board which had been set up to examine the administrative structures and systems at the facility.
The first proactive measure taken by the government to address the need for a meaningful prison reform was the establishment of a new management system with the appointment of managers responsible for security, operations, and care and reintegration.
An Education Coordinator and Assistant Education Coordinator were subsequently engaged. It should be highlighted that these two appointments have brought about a marked improvement in both quality and number of educational and vocational opportunities that are available at the facility today. The reform is undoubtedly yielding positive results, as evidenced by the fact that the number of inmates who are participating effectively in these programmes is also growing steadily.
In addition, the necessary preparations for the introduction of a care and rehabilitative programme for each inmate, as stipulated by law, are now well under way. Each programme will eventually be assessed and approved by the Offender Assessment Board, which is one of the new boards to be set up in accordance with the Restorative Justice Act.
In tandem with these reforms, a further change was implemented through the establishment of a new Department responsible for Probation and Parole, formerly known as the Probation Services, with these services being removed from the Correctional Services and given its own director. This new department will be supervising and monitoring parolees. Besides starting the process to recruit additional probation officers, in recent months a number of officers within this department have participated in an exchange programme in the UK to receive fist-hand experience in the implementation of parole, thereby enhancing their roles and skills. A Victim Support Unit which will also be set up within the Department of Probation and Parole, will bring about innovative measures in the fields of victim support and mediation.
Although a significant amount of preparatory work has already been undertaken to introduce this new law, there is still more that needs to be done. The government chose to exert great caution with regard to the law. The lack of restorative justice measures in our criminal system has long been felt. The first priority, therefore, was to enact a law that offers new opportunities to prison inmates, whilst also giving access to those who really wish to participate in the available restorative justice measures.
The new Restorative Justice Act will reach its full potential in the long run. A long-term implementation strategy would give ample space for the newly introduced measures and others that will need to be launched in the future to function effectively.
The basic restorative justice principles which have been reflected into our new law offer the opportunity for a person who has erred to turn over a new leaf. Moreover, these new measures provide the means for offenders to rehabilitate while at the same time repairing the damage that they have caused to their victim and to society.
The Restorative Justice Act is a huge step in the right direction. I feel confident that by providing greater rehabilitation opportunities for offenders, we shall be reducing the likelihood of re-offending and thereby contributing to crime prevention and community safety.
Carmelo Mifsud Bonnici is Minister for Home and Parliamentary Affairs