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Allegations of Abuse
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A
Northland woman who complained of being raped by a policeman is ready to tell
her story to an official inquiry - and she hopes the police will be equally
frank. Prime
Minister Helen Clark announced this week that Justice Bruce Robertson and
Dame Margaret Bazley would head a Commission of Inquiry into historic
allegations of rape by police and the way the complaints were investigated. The
terms of reference for the inquiry have not yet been set, but Judith Garrett,
who says she was handcuffed then raped by a Kaitaia police constable in 1988,
said she would be "fine" about telling the commissioners of her
experience. "I'm
not scared any more. I can hold my head up high and go there and hopefully
see some justice done. I do hope the police will be open and frank." The
60-year-old said that she was no longer worried about matters that concerned
her as a younger woman, such as her "reputation". She
said that after complaining about being raped, her life changed from being
"very ordinary" to being "terrifying" due to an organised
campaign to discredit her which included blood-stained sheets being left on
her lawn. Ms
Garrett said that she sent details of her case to Miss Clark after learning
of Rotorua woman Louise Nicholas' complaint that three policemen had raped
her in 1983 and 1986. Ms
Garrett welcomed Dame Margaret's appointment, saying: "I think she'll be
great. She would have no illusions. She'd be a hard woman to pull the wool
over her eyes." Ms
Garrett was also pleased with the appointment of High Court judge Justice
Robertson. She
was waiting to hear where the inquiry would be held, and what part she would
play in it. |
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