Articles like this make me wonder why adults push agendas where they know that the safety of children are at risk. Why is their even a question as to whether or not a pedophiliac sexual offender should be put on a registry? Is it because those who are anti-sex offender registry's are ill informed? Or is it that this opposition has backing from pedophiliac groups? I did notice that in the US their are groups who are against the sexual offender registry and those who financially support their web site are known pedophiles. The second number of people that I notice who are against the sexual offender registry are families of the offender and the offender themselves. If someone who is against the sexual offender registry would leave a comment about their knowledge of children being abused and why they wouldn't want children protected I would welcome that. One of the biggest arguments is that most sexual offenders are not on the registry so it doesn't work. The reality is sexual abuse of children and in general is widely under reported. And it is well known that pedophiliac sexual offenders offend between 100 to 400 times before they are caught. So saying that a "new" offender isn't on the registry is smoke and mirrors and is not founded in any clear logic. Rosie
KATE CHAPMAN AND ANDREA VANCE
Last updated 08:25 27/04/2012
Police Minister Anne Tolley is considering plans for an index drawn up by police and Corrections after a convicted paedophile was exposed working as a teacher.
The register will not be open to the public and will only be viewed by officials with security clearance.
A justice lobby group and anti-child abuse advocates have backed government proposals.
Child Matters academic services manager Amanda Meynell said there would be benefits from access and information sharing it would give to authorities and agencies.
But, Rethinking Crime and Punishment director Kim Workman said a register would increase public fear unnecessary.
"New Zealand should resist dealing with cases where an individual offender beats the system, by legislating against a whole class of offenders.
"We want to treat released offenders as fugitives in their own country, after they've paid the price."
The Government should also be cautious about basing the register on the British version.
"In the UK, two teenagers engaged in under-age consensual sex could end up on the register."
There were also concerns about what people did with the information once they had it, Workman said.
And driving sex offenders into hiding would only increase chances of their reoffending.
Lobby group Sensible Sentencing Trust http://www.safe-nz.org.nz/ is in favour of a register but called for it to be open to the public. The group operates an online database for sex and violent offenders.
"If the minister is really concerned about public safety and preventing further victims the register must be open to the public," spokesman Garth McVicar said.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/politics/6814293/Benefits-seen-in-register-of-sex-offenders
The majority of people who are against the public sex offender registry are not "pro-pedophilia" nor do they advocate or condone the sexualization of children in any way. Obviously, there are fringe groups that exist that are run by self-proclaimed pedophiles such as NAMBLA and the like. But again, most people who advocate for registry reform are family members of registrants who are forced to suffer long after their family member has completed their sentence. For example, my fiancee was a sexually abused 12 year old who acted out by abusing his 6 year old half sister. Not only was his abuse completely ignored, he was charged as an adult and he AND I will suffer forever because of the PUBLIC registry and the public misconceptions about sex offenders. Despite horrific high profile cases and the legislation inspired by them, the high majority of sex offenders are not violent, nor have they victimized children. In the US there are 200+ offenses that can result in the sex offender label. We ABSOLUTELY believe in just punishment for sex crimes; we DO NOT believe in lifelong punishment that extends far past the sentence, and directly harms family members of the registrant, including their children. When we lump 750k people into one "dangerous pedophile" category, when that is severely inaccurate, we lose the ability to track the ones who ARE truly dangerous. The fact is our registry in the US has not prevented sex crimes. At all. All the research confirms that. But our politicians love having the good old "child safety" argument in their back pocket for when they need PR.
ReplyDeleteHi Shana,
ReplyDeleteWe've spoke before on your site on YouTube. I think the work you are doing is great. You are putting a face out there and creating dialog. I understand the type of family your fiancee came from. I share my family of origin issues on this blog as well. I understand what it is like to be raised in a family of abusers. I was raised in a family of incestuous pedophiles that I traced back 4 generations. The only reason I couldn't trace farther is because everyone was dead. My concern with the movement to abolish the sexual offender registry is that there are thousands of pedophilic sexual offenders who will re-offend. If the abolishment movement wins what happens to the safety of children? That is my argument. I survived severe pedophilic sexual abuse and I didn't become a pedophile which I could have. So just because one survived something horrific doesn't mean they should repeat the pattern. It is obvious that the law was extreme in your fiance's situation. He was 12 for petes sake. They didn't take the time to understand the family dynamics. It is obvious from your blog and YT page that he isn't a repeat offender and more then likely won't ever offend again. Their is a website http://sexoffenderissues.blogspot.com/ that is funded in part by known pedophiles. Ironically when I did this post under their supporters tag was a known pedophile who is selling a book. I will have to look through my research to find the person. Today when I looked he is gone. I find that interesting. This doesn't mean he isn't supporting the site it just means they took down his book and acknowledgment that he supports the site. I have never made claims that the majority of people on the sexual offender registry are dangerous pedophiles. Their are dangerous pedophiles on the sexual offender registry though. I can guarantee you that there are more than 200+ people on the registry who meet the criteria you propose. Read this blog and others that share stories of children who are sexually abused by pedophiles. That is a gross under reporting. If you feel that it is accurate then I have to disagree with you. A person who grooms and sexually abuses a child is a pedophile. When sites take money from pedophiles to run their sites then they are pro-pedophilia whether they like it or not.
Rosie, I just discovered your reply now and wanted to respond. I and several others are in the midst of forming a new, nationwide group that advocates for registry reform, not removal of it completely. Without launching into a long diatribe, essentially we believe that the public registry will only be effective if it is thinned out to reveal true potential threats. People who are truly dangerous and likely to re-offend (not based on the system we use now, one that is more refined and accurate) would remain. People like my fiancee and other law-abiding registrants who have good support systems and a stable lifestyle would be removed. Not only would the public be much better able to discern true threats, the resources we would save could be applied towards programs that help educate and prevent abuse rather than waiting until after it happens. I hope this makes a little more sense. BTW awesome old picture of your parents.
DeleteHi Shana,
DeleteI do believe that the SOR needs to be overhauled to reflect those who are true predators. I personally know cases where teenagers had a consensual relationship and the boy ended up on the SOR. I don't believe that was the original intent. The only problem I have with those who want to abolish or revamp the SOR is that many are pedophiles who are pushing this agenda. I for one believe that if someone is a pedophile they need to stay on the SOR. There isn't enough research on pedophilia and it's treatment yet to safely take someone with pedophilia off the offender list. As long as their are pedophilic child sexual offenders that are part of the movement to overall the SOR your cause will continue to meet road blocks. I think if you could do some research on what pedophilia is and the treatment, etc. that would help. I know there are at least 3 pedophilic groups that use your videos and blog to promote their belief that the SOR should be abolished. Thanks for responding and I appreciate your willingness to have this discussion. Rosie