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THERE is no excuse for child welfare authorities to leave allegations of child abuse uninvestigated, regardless of their level of severity. The Department of Families and Communities is charged with the responsibility of protecting children, the most vulnerable members of our community. The department says it is following national trends by shifting its resources away from investigating all cases of reported child abuse to protecting families. Its processes have been defended by Families and Communities Minister Jay Weatherill and Families SA chief executive Beth Dunning. This policy may have merit in terms of early intervention to prevent harm from occurring but raises questions about what happens to those children who have been abused and remain in potentially dangerous situations. Department figures clearly show it is not meeting its targets when investigating allegations of child abuse – whether they be sexual, physical or emotional. It appears only the most serious cases are being given the urgency they deserve, resulting in other investigations taking longer to begin than they should or not being undertaken at all. According to the department, less than 20 per cent of the notifications it receives are substantiated, resulting in distress and trauma for those who are investigated and subsequently cleared. While this may be the case, mandatory notification of child abuse has become compulsory across the public sector and throughout educational and religious institutions. People reporting child abuse must be assured that their complaints will be taken seriously and not dismissed or shelved because departmental resources have been diverted to other strategies, regardless of their merit. AAP (29-12-2006) |
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