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The Christchurch Civic
Crèche Case |
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The Canterbury Council for Civil Liberties would
not object to a register of convicted child molesters, but says its use
should be restricted. The Citizens Against Violence group called for the
register after the announcement of a child abuse inquiry centring
on the Civic Child Care Centre in Christchurch. A spokesman for the council, Mr Graeme Dunstall. said he was in favour of a register covering all childcare
workers, including information such as general work competency. He believes it should be held independently from
employers, who would be told only whether the person was fit and proper, and
not the detailed contents of their file. As in all cases of data privacy, the person
concerned should be able to scrutinise entries on their file. Mr Mark Vivian, the co-ordinator
for STOP, a programme for men who have sexually offended, said a register
should be considered despite difficulties. One problem was the "relatively few" men
who sexually abused children were convicted in court A register might also give an impression that
children were more at risk of abuse outside their homes, when most serious offences
were done by family members or family friends. |
