Minister of Information Dana Morris Dixon has indicated that the government is using restorative justice to foster a more peaceful Jamaica.

“On one side you have what’s happening in terms of law enforcement, but on the other side, in terms of justice, there’s a lot of work that’s taking place, and so the Minister of Justice [Horace Chang] has spoken a lot about this, and they have sensitised over 29,000 Jamaicans about restorative justice since the start of 2024, and the restorative justice unit is promoting a culture of peace and non-violent conflict resolution, which we know is absolutely important,” Dixon said.

The minister revealed that since 2016, the government has invested over $3.7 billion in expanding alternative justice services across the island, including mediation, child diversion, and victim services.

“This is something that we should applaud because, as we do with law enforcement, there is other work that we have to do,” Dana added while also announcing that the Jamaican court systems are backlog-free.

While speaking at the post-Cabinet briefing, she said the court administration division announced that all 13 parish courts across Jamaica are now free of criminal case backlogs.

“That is a big, big thing in Jamaica, and as we said, we’re looking at making Jamaica more peaceful. There’s an entire ecosystem around that, so you have law enforcement and what’s happening there. You have what’s happening in terms of restorative justice and dealing with conflict resolution, and now you have, when you go into the justice system, the ability to have your cases dealt with more quickly, and so all criminal matters in these 13 parish courts will now be dealt with within the established 24-month standard.”