Restorative Justice in Desmond Tutu’s Ubuntu;implication for Alternative Dispute Resolution in Nigeria

Student: Israel Onwe (Project, 2025)
Department of Philosophy
University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, Port Harcourt , River State

Abstract

This research project epitomizes on the concept of Ubuntu as a restorative justice in Nigeria. Ubuntu philosophy originating from African humanism emphasizes interconnectedness, community and restoration. In the context of restorative justice in Nigeria, Ubuntu principles offers a unique approach to addressing harm, promoting healing and fostering reconciliation. So in this research project, our findings therefore corroborate the thesis that Ubuntu can be applied as a principle of restorative justice in Nigeria. It admonishes justice from the point of view of the relative humanism and altruism in living in mutual harmony of existentialism. It is a form of humanism which can be expressed in the phrase like ‘I think therefore we are’. With the Ubuntu philosophy, humans are inherently connected. Emphasis is on the collective well-being, restorations are focusing on healing and reparation. Here in this work, the qualitative research methodology is used with a focus on analyzing and interpreting Tutu’s (1985) writing on Ubuntu principles of restorative justice.

Keywords
restorative justice desmond ubuntu implication alternative dispute resolution nigeria
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