Justice Anywhere is Justice Everywhere,
quotes Martin Luther King ( jnr)
INTRO
It was one of the busiest days on
campus. Deadline for the submission of our project works was in the offing
.Typical of many students, the last minute syndrome was on the verge of
disowning them as it always does.
I was quiet fortunate to have finished
mine early. With the no nonsense of a supervisor I had, I knew I couldn’t stake
that cards and bet my hopes of graduating away. This was a major driving force
that goaded me to complete my work early.
Having done with mine, I turned into a
pseudo –consultant, providing assistance to many of my colleagues who also
wanted to defy time.
It was in one of this consultative
sessions in the library that a thief exploit to pick my Laptop which was
sitting a little behind where I sat.
When it dawn on me to turn and make
reference to my machine, it was gone. The fear of losing all the things that I
had ever done with that machine became a source of great worry to me. I could
only take solace from the fact that the day of my unceremonious departure with
my companion (My Laptop) was the same day I had printed my project work. With
my project in hard format, the pain, though disheartening, was not excruciating
relative to how I would have felt had the otherwise been the case.
The news surrounding my mysterious lost
spread so quickly (Not like Wild Fire but Dumsor Dumsor). Even before I could
get out of the library, my colleagues at the reception had gotten wind of the
situation. It was great experience that shaped my human relations skills.
For some of my mates, their feared was
that my lost meant I had lost important class documents. Others were
particularly attentive to the injury that my pink-color laptop had left me
with, having depended on it for almost the four years of my life on campus.
In an honest show of sympathy laced
with guilt, my friend opted to give me his brand New Dell to use and keep for
good. I was lucky. In fact, it became a source of pride to me. The fact that of
the many victims of laptop theft, I was the only person to get mine replaced
speaks volumes to the kind of reputation and love I had earned over my
educational stint.
In the dying embers of our campus days
on campus, the situation of Laptop theft became so critical. Some of my
colleagues in view of the development boycotted the library. But, for some of
us, not using the school luxury was an unaffordable luxury. Though many
security mechanisms were devised to stem the tide, it did not materialize.
Although I believe in providence, I am
equally a very analytical person. Things that happens to me are always a
learning opportunity for me. Typical of me, I didn’t let this situation pass
without subjecting to critical analysis.
OBSERVATIONS
In my reflective moods, I took the
pains to assess how our justice system works for the victim. The subject of how
victims of crime are reimbursed came nagging.
When a crime is committed, the usual
trend is that frantic efforts are made at rounding up perpetrators and
subjecting them to the full rigors of the law.
In some cases, huge bounty is
placed on the criminals, making crime a money making avenue for
informants-(This is not to say that I am opposed to the concept).
Our pre-occupation
with the criminal tends to shroud or
overtake any other efforts, especially the critical efforts of helping to
reimburse or providing lifelines to victims of a crime.
While I agree that criminals must be
punished, better still, incarcerated to serve as a deterrence to others, I
strongly believe that victims of the crimes should be supported so that the
psychological, emotional and financial trauma that comes with crime will be mitigated,
to a large extent.
From where I sit, I see a criminal justice
system which is aimed more at deterrence than restoration.
When my machine was stolen, no School Administrator/Management/Lecture/Security
Chief call to commiserate with me on my lost-(Perhaps they thought I was
careless). The sober looking librarians could only lament and rehash the
mechanisms they have put in place to me to remedy the menace.
I was totally dumbfounded at the issue
at handled. At this point, all kind of heinous thoughts came calling. Though some
were highly unacceptable, I had to entertain them given the mental state the
development had plunged me.
For once, the bringing of a Mallam to
the library by one female colleague of mine confronted with similar fate, begun
to make sense to me. (This was however an exercise in futility; an act that I
will never condone under any circumstance).
Last week, the Chief Justice was reported
as signaling an intensification of her Justice for All Programme. Her commitment
to this Programme was given a praetorian impetus when a documentary by one
diligent journalist from stocks of the Multi-media was presented to her. The
documentary which chronicles the plights of remand prisoners was equally
presented to the Interior ministry for perusal.
While I agree and commend the Chief
Justice for her efforts in this regard, I strongly posit that the Justice for
all programme will truly live up to its meaning if it is extended to victims
who suffer from one criminal act or the other.
In a country where insurance
penetration is still record time-low, we must not leave anything to chance.
Efforts at restoring victims of crime should prioritized if we are serious
about reducing crime to the barest minimum.
Other Agencies of socialization have
also lost grasp over the issue. At an open forum in church last two weeks, I
was shocked at the amount that had been earmarked for victims who had suffered
one unfortunate fate in the hands of criminals. The amount was so paltry that
it can’t even foot lorry fare of a victim seeking to report the case in the
Police Station.
In view of this circumstance, is it not
possible that priority over criminals at the expense of victims is the reason
why crime abounds at the rate? Is it not possible that these victims end up
becoming criminals either for vengeance or as means for survival? What
opportunities are designed to restore.
RECOMMENDATIONS
- · As the Agenda setter and Purveyor of information, the media should widen its scope to cover stories of crime victims in order to re-focus public conversations towards the victims.
- · I commend the Chief Justice’s efforts at swift justice dispersal except to add that she should include more victim-restorative mechanism in that regard.
- · Policy and law makers should focus and place premium on intensifying victim-restorative end of the criminal laws.
- · If these laws exits then the National Commission for Civic Education should keep the public abreast with them.
- · Agencies of Socialization-the Church, School, Traditional Authorities and other interest groups must also rise up to the duty of ensure human decency.
Samuel Osarfo Boateng
PR/Communication Analyst.
samuelcreasta@gmail.com
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