Restoring human trafficking victims through victim-offender dialogue.

Source: (2010) Cardozo Journal of Conflict Resolution. 12:217-244.

The criminal justice system focuses on punishing criminals for their wrongs, which often results in the victims of those crimes believing their needs have been unattended to or ignored. Because this traditional view of the justice system is offender-focused, it has
resulted in more harm to victims, to their families, and to communities. A progressive theory that attends to the needs of victimsinstead of focusing solely on the offender that is gaining popularity in North America and Europe is called “restorative justice.” Restorative justice focuses on responding to and understanding the victims well as those affected by the crime, rather than focusing solely on the offender. One form of restorative justice is Victim-Offender Dialogue (VOD), which involves direct dialogue between the victim and the offender with one or more facilitators present as they discuss the crime committed. This Note will focus on the use of VOD as an option for “victims” of human trafficking who wish to have a dialogue with their trafficker or “offender.” (excerpt)