Author

John Winterdyk

Title

UTILIZING THE CAPACITY OF POSITIVE PEER PRESSURE THROUGH THE GLOBAL YOUTH JUSTICE MOVEMENT: A ‘GOLDEN’ OPPORTUNITY FOR THE BALKANS

Abstract

The predicament of juvenile delinquency for most nations, including that of the Balkan region at large, has been something of an enigma ever since juvenile justice legislation was first introduced. In recent years, juvenile delinquency in the Balkans has not only been increasing but its gravity has also trended upward and added to the burden of a strained juvenile justice system. This article presents an alternative option to the formal juvenile justice system which is designed to empower youth, which builds community capacity and youth resiliency, and is reintegrative and restorative in nature. An overview of the peer court model is presented and described within a possible Balkan context. Various evidence is discussed as to its relative success in other regions of the world. The paper concludes with several observations as to why the peer court model could/should be adopted by the countries in the Balkans along with several pragmatic and practical considerations around the implementation and administration of the model.

Kategorija maloletničke delinkvencije za većinu naroda, uključujući i uopšteno narode na Balkanu, jeste poput enigme još od uvođenja prvih zakona o maloletnicima u pravosuđe. U novije vreme maloletnička delinkvencija na Balkanu ne samo da je u porastu, već i ozbiljnost ovih dela pokazuje uzlazni trend i još više opterećuje već opterećeni sistem maloletničkog pravosuđa. Ovaj rad predstavlja jednu alternativu mogućnost u odnosu na formalni sistem maloletničkog pravosuđa, mogućnost koja je osmišljena da osnaži mlade, da podigne kapacitet zajednice i sposobnost oporavka mladih i koja je po prirodi reintegrativna i restorativna. Dat je pregled modela vršnjačkog suda koji je opisan u mogućem balkanskom kontekstu. Raspravlja se o različitim dokazima o relativnom uspehu ovog modela u ostalim regionima u svetu. U zaključku rada dato je nekoliko zapažanja u pogledu pitanja zašto bi model vršnjačkog suda mogao/trebalo da se usvoji u zemljama Balkana uz nekoliko pragmatičnih i praktičnih razmatranja u po-gledu primene i vođenja ovog modela.

Keywords

juvenile delinquency, peer courts, alternative measures, diversion, restorative justice.

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DOI: 10.5937/nabepo22-15662
UDK: 343.85:343.91-053.5/.6(497)