Restorative Justice in the Public Sector Dispute Mediation Center within Educational Institutions

Abstract

Restorative justice is a mainstream justice process that focuses on conflict resolution and mediation. Restorative justice is an alternative to the mainstream justice process as it allows all parties to the conflict to forgive and provide the opportunity to those who take responsibility for the harm. The research article consists of the following objectives: 1) to investigate the criminological concepts and theories concerning restorative justice and the public sector dispute mediation in accordance with the Dispute Mediation Act B.E. 2562 (2019); and 2) to explore the restorative justice operated by the Public Sector Dispute Mediation Center of Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University. This research is a qualitative research. The tools used were in-depth interviews and group discussions. The key informants included administrators, members of the Public Sector Dispute Mediation Center's committee, and restorative justice professionals who had worked with the university, totaling ten people from the study.

It has been found as follows: 1) The concepts and theories on restorative justice, the public sector dispute mediation, and Buddhist mediation are all consistent in terms of development and mental healing; 2) The Public Sector Dispute Mediation Center of Mahachulalongkornrajavidyalaya University (MCU) was established in accordance with the Dispute Mediation Act B.E. 2562, Section 68 to Section 70. The center is operated on the basis of Buddhist mediation, and it is notable for being a center of knowledge on dispute mediation with an emphasis on inner peace. Most mediators are monks who have undergone registration training. It is also the prototype center that has been assessed according to the standards of Rights and Liberties Protection Department. However, owing to the pandemic situation of COVID-19 combined with the center's location within the educational institution, there are still a small number of users, and public awareness of the center's roles and responsibilities is still low. The proposed suggestion is for MCU's Public Sector Dispute Mediation Center to increase its efficiency in dispute mediation, as well as to implement proactive planning and a system for post-mediation follow-up.