Tuesday, November 28, 2006

Restorative Justice, Part II
The second pair of speakers I heard at the Restorative Justice Conference was Linda Biehl and Ntobeko Peni from South Africa. In the wake of apartheid, South Africa instituted the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, a place where one could apply to receive amnesty for any act, omission, or offense with a political objective. Decisions were made on a case by case basis and amnesty was given when the objective of the crime was in fact political in nature and when the whole truth was given by the perpetrator. The victims also had a chance to tell their story to the Amnesty Committee. In addition to the Amnesty Committee, the Commission had a Human Rights Violations Committee that investigated human rights abuses and a Reparation and Rehabilitation Committee to restore victims' dignity and assist with rehabilitation and healing for survivors, their families, and the community as a whole. 22,000 victims told their stories. Over 7,000 perpetrators came seeking amnesty; around 850 received amnesty.

Ntobeko Peni, having spent about two years in prison for killing Amy Biehl (along with three others), applied for and received amnesty from the committee. Linda and Peter Biehl, Amy's parents, also attended and spoke at the hearings, saying that they did not oppose amnesty and that they had forgiven the men who killed their daughter. In a clip from Long Night's Journey into Day, a documentary about the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, Amy's father (who has since died) talked about the work Amy had done to end apartheid, how proud they were that she had been willing to risk her life for that work, and how they would do everything in their power to honor her work and her memory. They spoke of the ironic fact that Amy had told them on the phone of the countless African men who were killed and listed in the papers simply by the number killed as opposed to the killing of a white person which would be headline news, not knowing that her name would be the name in the headlines. The mother of one of the other men involved in Amy's killing sent the Biehls an apology via a video tape. In the tape she spoke of their sorrow gathering around the table for the holidays, facing the sorrow of Amy's absence at the table. The Biehls personally went to meet her and tell her they would not oppose her son's plea for amnesty. The Biehls subsequently founded the Amy Biehl Foundation Trust to work against violence in South Africa. Linda Biehl, Amy's mother, speaks of her work as that of a grandmother working with young men who are looking for parenting, for guidance; men who lost their own childhood on the streets of South Africa during a war.

Ntobeko spoke of growing up watching his comrades be shot and killed daily, but that the environment did not scare him but motivated him. He said he was ready to die for the cause, and eventually was ready to kill for it. He said it was realizing who Amy was that broke him as an individual, and he stopped being a militant. At the hearings, Amy's parents told him that they had already forgiven him, and now it was up to South Africa to forgive him. Their statement had a profound effect on him, as he realized that he had killed someone fighting for the same cause and as he realized that he could have done things differently. He spoke of the current situation in South Africa, where things have not improved a great deal and the youth are involved in substance abuse and criminal activity. He started working with the Amy Biehl Foundation, but still was not at peace with himself. It was only in working with Amy's parents that he eventually realized he still needed to forgive himself, and he said that he found the strength to do so in their forgiveness of him. He said he would not have been able to do it without them.

Linda spoke of the youth in South Africa today who have been taught the skills of violence, but no longer have the resistance into which to put that violent energy, so they are turning to crime. She realized through the experience the importance of mothering, and that it is out of her identity as a mother that she is able to mother those who did not have the kind of childhood her own daughter had. She said that when you can face pain, you can take it to another level. Reconciliation is energizing; it is being proactive.

The third pair of speakers at the Restorative Justice Conference was Robi Damelin and Ali Abu Awwad. Robi and Ali's story can be seen in the documentary Encounter Point, which was recently released and was shown at the Milwaukee International Film Festival a few weeks ago. Robi's son had been killed by a Palestinian sniper while he was serving in the Israeli military and stationed in the West Bank. Robi pleaded with those listening not to take sides in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, saying that you cannot be pro-Israel or pro-Palestine without becoming bitter. She said, "It does not help if you are pro-this or pro-that; help us find reconciliation." There is no black or white, she told us, only a vast amount of gray. In a letter to the mother of the sniper that killed her son David, Robi told the mother that her son would not have killed David had he known him, had he heard David play a Mozart Concerto on the piano. She understands that as a young child the sniper saw his uncle killed and that he had lost two of his family members in the First Intifada. She said that we must work to understand the consequences of the Israeli occupation on the Israeli people and the suffering of the Palestinian people. Robi said that her son went to serve in the West Bank in the hopes that he could be one Israeli soldier who treated the Palestinian people with dignity, and so that those under his command would do the same. After she spoke in once, a Palestinian man came up to her and told her he had been through her son's checkpoint the day before he was shot. He said the soldier apologized for having to make them go through the checkpoint. He said it was the first time an Israeli soldier had ever treated him with such respect. Robi said that images are seen in the media, and judging is so easy, but do you know what is in the heart of the young man who is standing there?

Ali Abu Awwad, whose brother was killed by Israeli soldiers, feels that the biggest enemy to peace is the media. He believes that both sides want peace, but no one is giving them any hope. After his brother was killed, Ali said that he was broken into a million pieces, but he couldn't do anything. He couldn't kill anyone because it would not make it better. He met with a group called Bereaved Israeli Families, and for the first time, he saw the pain of the other side. He said that it is easy to be right, but it is very difficult to be honest. You have to decide to be human, and then allow the other side to be human. You have to understand each other's heaviness, and allow the other side to understand why you are angry. He joined the group of bereaved families, but said that it is not easier; it is harder, but he can live now. He compared it to lighting a small candle in the darkness. You do not light up the whole darkness, but it gives you enough light to take a step to get out of the darkness.

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