Victim offender mediation/dialogue as a parole requirement and a strategy to ensure successful reintegration of offenders in a correctional facility- in the North-West Province.

Abstract

Victim offender mediation is one of the strategies of ensuring successful reintegration of offenders into their families and communities in South Africa. However, the process of victim offender mediation poses a lot of challenges to the victims and secondary victims. This paper discusses victim offender dialogue as a parole requirement and a strategy to ensure that offenders who are released are successfully reintegrated back into their communities. A qualitative research approach and a descriptive research design were used to assess this parole requirement and the success of reintegration after victim offender dialogues have taken place. Quota sampling technique was used in this study to interview ten correctional officials in different ranks. Thematic analysis was used. This paper makes important conclusions and recommendations to improve the strategies used to ensure that offenders are successfully reintegrated back into their families.