Wehbi: Restorative Justice is a Strategic Choice Confronted by Weak Implementation
Abdelatif Wehbi, the Minister of Justice, affirmed that restorative justice represents a profound shift in legal philosophy, focusing on repairing harm and involving the victim rather than merely imposing punishment. However, he emphasized that the greatest challenge remains in its practical implementation, despite the legislative progress made.
The government official clarified that the amendments introduced in the Penal Procedure Law, which recently came into effect, have expanded the scope of this mechanism and simplified its procedures. Nonetheless, its presence in practice remains limited, depriving the judicial system of an effective tool to alleviate the pressure on courts and reduce prison overcrowding.
In response to a written question from Ahmed Tawizi, Wehbi highlighted that restorative justice shifts the concept of justice from a punitive perspective to a rehabilitative one aimed at restoring social balance by empowering the victim to play a crucial role in determining compensation methods, while the perpetrator takes responsibility for their actions.
The minister noted that lawmakers have worked to develop the conciliation mechanism, particularly through Articles 41 and 1-41 of the Penal Procedure Law, which allows for a broader range of offenses to be eligible for conciliation and enables the public prosecution to propose it, in addition to its establishment before the investigating judge and simplifying its procedures, with the potential to terminate the criminal case or the enforcement of the penalty.
He also pointed out that the draft amendment of the Penal Code includes new provisions that reinforce this approach, including recognizing the effects of conciliation or withdrawal in halting a public action even in some cases related to public order, as well as establishing conciliation in check-related cases within the Commercial Code, which allows terminating prosecutions or the effects of judgments in cases of performance or withdrawal.
Despite this legislative accumulation, Wehbi acknowledged that the issue is not related to the texts but rather to the culture of practice within the courts. He called on various stakeholders, including judges, lawyers, and litigants, to engage in activating this mechanism, which could achieve a balance between the rights of victims, societal requirements, and opportunities for the reintegration of offenders, along with easing the burden on the judiciary and correctional institutions.
