ABSTRACT
In this essay, I raise a complex and contentious question: what is the role of punishment in a restorative justice process? I raise the question to invite discussion and debate in the field, not to assert a clear and unequivocal answer. The term "punishment" evokes strong images and feelings in people; it has no singular meaning. This is especially the case when it is Linked to a restorative justice process, that is, an informal legal process that includes lay and legal actors, which is partly, but not entirely state punishment. I have not worked out many technical features of the argument,1 but I am convinced that those interested in the idea of restorative justice need to grapple with the idea of punishment.2
