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South Australia is the only state not to have implemented a national register targeting child sex offenders,leaving youngsters, it is claimed, open to "greater risk of abuse". Every Australian state and territory, except SA, has passed legislation to join the Australian National Child Sex Offender Register, designed to track pedophiles cross-border. The Federal Government and anti-child abuse campaigners have slammed the Rann Government's inaction. "The delay by South Australia can only put children at greater risk of being abused", Federal Justice and Customs Minister Chris Ellison said. "It potentially exposes every child in every state and territory to abuse, because this is about tracking pedophiles across jurisdictions. "Until South Australia acts, we cannot have a fully functioning system". The State Government responded to the criticism with a promise it will introduce legislation "as a matter of priority" - if it wins office at the March election. Under the register, launched by the Federal Government in September 2004, anyone convicted of sexual or other serious offences againt children must give police their address, employment details, car registration and details of places they frequent. Pedophiles must also surrender information about clubs they belong to and details of any travel plans. The information is collated and placed on a National databse that can be accessed by special police units in all state and territories. "It is beyond comprehension why the SA Government would impede the development of the system which aims to protect vulnerable children from the vilest members of our society", Senator Ellison said. "This apathy represents a serious gap in the register's capacity to monitor the interstate movement of offenders." Acting Police Minister Paul Holloway declined to explain why SA had not signed up for the national register, but said it would be introduced "as a matter of priority" if the Rann Government won the election. "The Government is presently drafting that legislation, taking into account the experiences of other states", Mr Holloway said. "(We) are determined to bring the best legislation possible to South Australian parliament as soon as we can." But that will not be before mid April, when parliament resumes. The legislation will then be put out for public consultation and it is unlikely SA would join the register until October. University of SA child protection expert Emeritus Professor Freda Briggs said she could not understand why the State Governemetn was "dragging it's feet". "It is incomprehensible given the Government's stress on tougher sentences and tightening laws around pedophilia", Professor Briggs said. Anti-abuse lobby the Australian Childhood Foundation said the legislation needed to be fast tracked immediately. "The SA Government has had ample opportunity to support the national register and it is vital this be done quickly," chief executive Joe Tucci said. "This is exposing children in SA to child abuse unnecessarily and it creates a gap in the coverage of the register on a national basis." Mr Tucci said research showed one child was abused in Australia every two minutes and recidivism rates among sex offenders were high, with 60 per cent likely to reoffend if they did not receive treatment. "The register is a vital step in stopping instances of reoffending," he said. Mr Morrell, from the anti pedophile group Movement Against Kindred Offenders, said child sex offenders were likely to reoffend and often moved around to avoid detection. "Tracking their movements across all borders is paramount and very important to prevention," Mr Morrell said. "This legislation must be a priority to better protect Australian children and should not be used simply as an election issue". Mr Morrell said the group also wanted details of the register made public so parents could better protect their children. Mr Holloway said the State Government was "unwavering in its determination to rid our society of the evils of pedophilia". He said the Government had contributed an extra $4 million to double the Police Pedophile Taskforce, had increased penalties for child sex offenders and introduced new offences for child pornography. Sunday Mail (8-1-2006) Nicole Cox |
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Our criminal justice sytsem is supposedly open and transparent. Yet you can't find out whether the bloke next door is a pedophile or recividist burglar. It's time for the hypocrisy to end. The sentencing outcomes of all criminal cases should be made public by being posted on the internet. Late last week, federal Justice and Customs Minister Chris Ellison slammed the Rann Government for being the only state not to have implemented a national register which is designed to track pedophiles cross-border. The State Government has promised to introduce legisaltion to remedy this as a matter of urgency if it is re-elected in March. There is one significant shortcoming with this register: it can only be accessed by police. This is not good enough. Parents have a right to know whether the person next door represents a danger to their children. In South Australia, and other states where the register is already in operation, governments won't tell the community the identity and location of pedophiles because it doesn't want to infringe their supposed right to privacy. Revealing the identity and location of pedophiles will also potentially set back their interests, making it harder for them to intergrate back into society. The policy of concealing prior convictions is flawed. The mistake stems from the fact that governments have not correctly balanced the competing interests. Ultimately, we are balancing the right of parents to take precautionary measures to protect their children against the right of offenders to intergrate seamlessly into the community. Both interests are legitimate. But, given that only one can prevail, there is no question that preference must be given to potential victims. It is a fundamental principal of justice that the rights of the innocent take priority over those of wrongdoers. Sure the pedophiles have done their time, but nevertheless it is their warped mindset that empirical evidence (in the form of high rate recividism) shows makes them an ongoing risk to others. They are the problem. Innocent people should not be required to accept increased risks to their safety to protect people from problems of their doing. Notions of personal responsibility require that it is the pedophiles who wear the potential adverse consequences of their appalling conduct. These consequences should not be thrust onto the rest of the community. Moreover, we all have the fundamental right to protect ourselves and those close to us. We can only exercise that right if we have the knowledge of the risks that confront us. Thus, we are entitled to know if there are hazardous substances in our neighbourhood. The same applies to risks presented by people whose past behaviour indicates dangerous tendencies. There is another reason why we are entitled to know about the misdeeds of neighbours. This applies to all prior convictions, not merely those that indicate a dangerous behavioural predisposition. Unless a court case is reported by the media, most people can effectively hide their criminal record. Prior criminality will only be disclosed if the person applies for a job which requires a criminal check. The State Government dragged it's heals in relation to the pedohile register. It should now lead the country by being the first state to abolish the concealment of prior convictions and enact legislation making the criminal justice system a genuinely public system. Adelaide Advertiser (11-1-2006) Article by Professor Mirko Bagaric- Head of Deakin Law School/ Author of "Privacy Law In Australia" |
MAKO/File's online - Listing many Australian paedophiles/sex offenders
We'll Hunt You Down, Rann Warns Pedophiles
PAEDOPHILES are also known by other names such as "ROCK SPIDERS" and "CHICKEN HAWKS"..
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Convicted Paedophile in the Baxter Detention Centre (9-3-05)
Group Criticises Paedophile Identifying Letter Drop
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