Manifestations of Restorative Justice in Afghan Criminal Law

Abstract

Restorative justice is a fresh area of research for scholars in anthropology and sociology and sometimes in criminal law. This area of study sees the crime as conflict between the victim and his criminal. From this perspective, the contemporary idea attempts to address the crime problem. One main concern of such restorative tendencies is to protect the victim or ensure compensation for losses sustained by the victim. Supporters of this restorative philosophy have attempted to define and specify objectives and principles for it. However, an analysis shows that an instance of restorative thought is expressed only in a few laws under review in Afghanistan, whereas some laws have restorative impact due to their date of enactment. Beyond legislation, jirgas and the people's councils for the settlement of disputes have these traces of restorative justice, and the laws of Afghanistan and the legislators of Afghanistan try to recognize these councils and to reform them while trying to resolve small disputes through these councils. This article applies an analytical-descriptive approach to examining the laws.