'21st Century Justice' at a local Brazilian school

Just as Brazil’s House of Congress discusses lowering the age of criminal responsibility, an innovative experiment in Brazil's southern state of Rio Grande do Sul has proven that there are more efficient ways to approach youth involvement with violence.

With promising results, and entitled ‘Justice for the 21st century’ the project is the result of the collaboration of entities such as the Ministry of Justice and the Association of Judges of Rio Grande do Sul (Ajuris) with the aim of divulging and applying Restorative Justice in the juvenile justice and in the public school systems.

New pupils are a prime target for schoolyard violence, they often have difficulties adapting and are frequent victims of bulling. In one public school, however, things are different. Located at the outskirts of Porto Alegre, Rafael Pinto Bandeira school members find such episodes to be less and less common thanks to a process that helps youths deal with conflicts, resolving relationship problems before they peak.

It all takes place in a room called “Sala do Bem-Querer” (loosely translates as 'well wisher’s room') “In this room we have to deal with disputes in a different way,” explains Clemi Gonçalves, teacher in the Rafael Pinto Bandeira state school. With an emphasis on reparation, in taking responsibility for one’s actions and the active participation of all involved, the activities in this room – described as restorative circles- have had notable success in violence prevention and creating a culture of peace in the school in the short space of two years.

"It is a place where one breathes peace” according to André Porto, Comunidad Segura caravan coordinator, who visited the school November of 2007. “In another school we visited near Natal, drawings by five-year-olds pinned on the walls depicted guns, corpses and shootouts,” said Porto. Even accounting for the fact the schools are set in different cities, Porto believes in the significance of the restorative practices. “Both schools are located in the periphery of big cities, but one is the complete opposite of the other.”

Dialogue between victim and aggressor

What are, in any case, restorative practices after all? Restorative justice is a legal concept that changes the focus of judicial practices. Traditionally busy trying to find and punish criminals, conventional justice does not take into account the needs of the victims or of the need for reparations – (to address physical, psychological or even social damage) for crimes. Restorative circles encourage independence, dialogue and that the people involved take an active role: victims, offenders, families and the community – all are invited to establish dialogue and join in the effort to understand each other.

And how did these ideas leave the court system and end up in a public school? Judge Leoberto Brancher has been applying the basic notions of Restorative Justice at the Child and Youth Court of Porto Alegre, capital of Brazil’s Rio Grande do Sul state, since 2002. The ‘Justice for the 21st Century’ project was born in 2005 with the support of a number of organizations, among them Ajuris, the association of Judges of Rio Grande do Sul, the UNDP, United Nations Program for Development, Brazil’s Ministry of Justice and the Criança Esperança charity. ‘Justice’ also has a host of local partners. “It is our goal to prevent disputes from reaching the court system”, said Nelnie Lorenzoni, project partnership coordinator at the State Education Office, Seduc-RS. Rafael Pinto Bandeira School was one of the first six schools involved.

An effort to understand causes, diminish consequences

“There are three distinct phases in the restorative circle”, explains Nelnie. In her view it is vital that the motives behind the offense are known, as it is to diminish its consequences. But the process is not led by any external authorities, such as judges. It begins by inviting all involved to take up their share of responsibility in the case. After that the circle meets. Participants are asked to understand each other’s positions, take responsibility for the offense and offer reparations in the form of an agreement. A third stage involves an evaluation of the proceedings, and checking whether the agreement has been upheld and whether the dispute or conflict has been resolved. A trained mediator follows the entire process, “but he should interfere as little as possible,” she cautions.

“It is our conclusion that most conflicts are due to a lack of communication. One act of physical aggression, for example, is usually rooted way back in a smaller misunderstanding,” said Nelnie. The restorative circle also involves violence prevention. “It is clear that these schools are less violent now, but we do not have the intention of ending violence by ourselves, it is a very complex problem,“ said Clemi Gonçalves, teacher. “These kids are immersed in a culture of violence. They are taught from a very early age that if they “get hit, they must hit back”. If a project such as our own were used in a wider scale, we would not even have to discuss things such as lowering the age of criminal responsibility.

Translated by Lis Horta Moriconi

Read Further: (In Portuguese)

O impacto da violência sobre crianças e jovens (Caravana Comunidade Segura 2007)

Justiça para o Século 21

Relato da implementação do Projeto Piloto de Justiça Restaurativa junto à 3ª Vara da Infância e da Juventude de Porto Alegre – Leoberto Brancher e Beatriz Aguinsky 

Relato de uma experiência em Justiça Restaurativa – Leoberto Brancher