Alternatives for Conflict Resolution and Restorative Justice, in Cases of Domestic Gender Violence in Ecuador

Abstract

The following research proposal has as its main objective the realization of a deep analysis of the alternatives of conflict resolution and restorative justice, in relation to the problem of intimate partner violence in Ecuador. In order to achieve this goal, a qualitative, theoretical-normative methodology has been used, which has been complemented with statistical data, based on the legal method of comparative law and supported by relevant interdisciplinary literature, including perspectives from sociology, criminology, and gender studies. This approach allows a broader understanding of the structural factors that influence the perpetuation of violence. As a result, the findings show that although the predominant punitive response constituted an advance in terms of the purpose of denaturalizing this social phenomenon, this response is still not sufficient in relation to obtaining a more humane response to domestic violence against women. Restorative justice, which is currently established in the Comprehensive Organic Criminal Code of Ecuador (COIP) (2014), is only provided for comprehensive reparation, once the criminal process and its respective sanction have been fully developed, being that it is imperative to concretely direct the direction towards other forms of treatment of violence in the family, as has been the case in the Mexican State.