Community Justice System in The Republic of The Philippines

Abstract

Community justice comprises four functions, specifically protection, restoration, rehabilitation, and reintegration. The community justice system in the Republic of the Philippines has been studied mostly in terms of the restorative function, leaving the other functions relatively neglected. Therefore, the study “Community Justice System in the Republic of the Philippines” examines whether and how all four functions manifest in the restorative justice system of the Philippines. Qualitative methods were employed by studying relevant documents and interviewing 21 key informants including state officials, NGOs, and community members involved in community justice affairs. All data were analyzed with content analysis. The results showed that the four functions of community justice exist and that the government of the Philippines provides support for communities’ involvement through a partnership and mobilized model. NGOs and community members called “Lupon” are critical actors who help operate the four functions of community justice. Thailand may learn from the Philippines by enabling various organizations to help mobilize community justice and by providing support like budgets, training, and allowances to community justice units to encourage them to work more efficiently. Further research should be undertaken with a study of integrating all four functions of community justice.