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Daily News
September 16, 2003
Goff wins Bent Can Opener Award from Skeptics
NZPA
Justice
Minister Phil Goff has won the first-ever Bent Can Opener Award from the New
Zealand Skeptics, for refusing to revisit the Christchurch Civic Creche case.
For 10 years, the skeptics
have made an annual Bent Spoon Award, in remembrance of spoonbender Uri
Geller.
They felt that a change in implement was necessary for an award that will be
officially conferred at this weekend's annual Skeptics Conference in Wellington.
Mr Goff is overseas and could not be reached for comment on his
"honour".
"The Christchurch Civic Creche case raises some very real concerns about
a whole raft of justice issues," Skeptics chairwoman Vicki Hyde said.
"We recognise that it is a can of worms for the minister, but it is one
that needs to be opened if we are to continue to have confidence in our
justice system."
Ellis, freed in 2000, has always maintained his innocence in the Christchurch
Civic Creche child abuse case.
Now many well-known New Zealanders are lending their signature to a top level
inquiry into his conviction.
Mr Goff has said he would be happy to refer any genuinely new evidence back
to the appeal judges, but it was not for him to determine whether people were
innocent or guilty.
The Skeptics predicted before the Ellis case a New
Zealand case would follow the then-developing United States
examples of claimed major child abuse incidents involving Satanic overtones
at pre-school facilities.
"We were concerned to hear of allegations of various classic Satanic
ritual abuse elements, including a number of truly bizarre or impossible
events," Ms Hyde said.
"Combined with questionable interview techniques, the then-prevailing
belief in recovered memory theories, and the social context of the case, it
looked like it was our prediction come true."
The Skeptics were concerned about the processes involved in the collection,
selection and presentation of evidence that led to the conviction.
"We consider that the scientific underpinning of the evidence is
questionable enough to justify closer scrutiny, so that we can all learn from
what happened and be more confident in the future regarding abuse
convictions," Ms Hyde said.
The Press
September 16, 2003
Skeptics bestow award on Goff
Justice Minister Phil Goff may have to clear some space on his
mantelpiece after winning the inaugural Bent Can Opener Award.
Mr Goff was named as the first recipient of the award yesterday by the
New Zealand Skeptics group, which said he won it for refusing to "open
the can of worms that is the Christchurch Civic Creche Case".
For the past 10 years, the Skeptics had made an annual Bent Spoon
Award, in honour of spoon-bender Uri Geller, but the group felt that a change
in implement was necessary for this year's "winner".
Mr Goff had steadfastly refused requests for a royal commission of
inquiry into the Civic Creche case, which saw Christchurch childcare worker Peter Ellis
convicted in 1993 of molesting children in his care.
"The Christchurch Civic Creche case raises some very real
concerns about a whole raft of justice issues," Skeptics chairwoman
Vicki Hyde said. "We recognise that it is a can of worms for the
minister, but it is one that needs to be opened if we are to continue to have
confidence in our justice system."
Ms Hyde said the group was not suggesting the children involved in the
case were liars.
What it was concerned about was the underlying processes that were
involved in the collection, selection, and presentation of evidence that led
to the conviction.
"Our official name is the New Zealand Committee for Scientific
Investigations of Claims of the Paranormal, and we consider that the
scientific underpinning of the evidence is questionable enough to justify
closer scrutiny, so that we can all learn from what happened and be more
confident in the future regarding abuse convictions."
The award will be officially conferred at the Skeptics' annual
conference at Victoria
University this week.
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