The perpetrator’s intent is one of the indicators for law enforcement authorities to apply restorative justice in solving a case, according to law expert from Mataram University, West Nusa Tenggara, Lalu Muhammad Hayyanul Haq.

“In my opinion, what becomes an indicator to apply restorative justice is not the severity of the crime but rather the perpetrator’s intention,” he noted during a national webinar streamed on YouTube on Friday.

“If the perpetrator intentionally committed the crime or if they do it based on their autonomous consciousness, and the crime was structured and systematic, then restorative justice cannot be applied,” he elaborated.

On the other hand, restorative justice could be applied if the criminal act committed by the perpetrator was influenced by a system from other group of people or matters beyond their control, he stated.

In this context, the perpetrator did not fully commit the crime or did not commit it based on their own will, he noted at a webinar titled “Restorative Justice Implementation in Indonesia: Problems and Solutions”.

Concerning the application of restorative justice in Indonesia, Haq urged law enforcement authorities to not solely rely on objectivity and evenhandedness in dealing with a certain case.

In addition to these two aspects, the application of restorative justice should involve transparency for the public, he opined.

“I should add that implementing restorative justice requires the existence of transparency. This is necessary to prevent the public’s distrust toward the implementation of restorative justice,” he elaborated.

With this, the implementation of restorative justice could be observed, understood, and be trusted by Indonesians as a resolution to a case that ensures recovery of victims and perpetrators.

Earlier, Head of Setara Institute Hendardi opined that restorative justice that the police and Attorney General’s Office recently applied tended to become a transactional instrument if it is not done with clear regulations.

Source: Antara News