It all started in 1975 in England, where prison chaplains launched a day to remember incarcerated people, the ‘Prisoner’s Sunday’. The idea was then spread in other countries and 20 years later it become the ‘Prisoner’s Week’.
Finally, in 1996 Canada expanded the prisoner’s week into the ‘Restorative Justice Week: Community, Victims, and Prisoners’, later shortened to ‘Restorative Justice Week’.
Nowadays, the International RESTORATIVE JUSTICE WEEK (#RJWeek) takes place every year all over Europe and beyond. The European Forum for Restorative Justice joins the annual international campaign since 2000 with initiatives organised by the Secretariat and by sahring information on events launched by our members!
In 2021 we already celebrate the 25th Restorative Justice Week!
The ‘Prisoner’s Week’ is still celebrated and in Belgium the national prison week and our international Restorative Justice Week are celebrated with a good collaboration between the EFRJ and local organisers working in prison settings: for example, in 2017 their theme is about family members of prisoners, something where restorative justice can have a proper say.
