Source: (1999) CYC-Online 8 (September). Cape Town, South Africa: The International Child and Youth Care Network.
Janet Schmidt is a trainer and coordinator of a conflict resolution program in Canada. One of the principles of restorative justice is that justice involves rebuilding lives and relationships rather than just punishing and rejecting offenders. With this in mind, Schmidt writes of the task of mediation between offenders and victims. She identifies certain aspects of forgiveness, the victim’s experience or journey, and the offender’s experience or journey. She then applies all of this to mediation between victims and offenders and the process of forgiveness and reconciliation.
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