Madam, – In the wake of the the disturbing details of the Roscommon incest and child abuse case, it is imperative now that we close all loopholes that limit the State’s capacity to react to suspicions of neglect for the benefit of all our children.
One such legislative barrier is the provision within the 2000 Education Welfare Act which states that the functions of the National Educational Welfare Board (NEWB) are limited to children between the ages of six and 16. Crucially, there is no statutory requirement for children to be enrolled in school before the age of six, which in effect means that teachers, principals and NEWB officers are powerless to intervene in the case of chronic absenteeism of a child who is enrolled in a school under that age. At that most important developmental stage in a child’s education, the infant years, the NEWB has no statutory grounds to intervene in a case of serious absenteeism, which many educators identify as a key indication of child neglect.
It is clear now that this legislation must be amended to ensure that whenever a child is enrolled in school, the powers afforded to the NEWB under the Educational Welfare Act can be enforced, regardless of the child’s age. Such a change would ensure that those in the school community and those charged with the responsibility of monitoring school attendance can make the maximum difference at the earliest opportunity. – Is mise,
Cllr AODHÁN Ó RÍORDÁIN,
Clonliffe Avenue,
Ballybough,
Dublin 3.
Madam, – I strongly object to the headline “Court told of support for incest mother by Catholic group” in The Irish Times of January 22nd. In my view the labelling as “Catholic” by any group defending the mother of these children is highly offensive to the 99.9 per cent of Catholics who regard this woman’s conduct as abhorrent. To use this headline on page 1 and the story of the human suffering on page 3 is a subtle form of Catholic-bashing, which many sections of the Irish media, including your own paper, delight in promoting on a regular basis. It also adds to the public perception that behind every abuse case is a Catholic in some shape or form and this is certainly not correct. Also, quoting submissions from social workers that an unnamed Catholic group was involved in this case, without citing evidence of the group’s existence, adds further fuel to this perception. – Yours, etc,
Madam, – While it is true, in the words of Judge Miriam Reynolds, that the children in this case were failed by “everyone around them”, it is also true that every day many other children are being failed by those around them because those who want to act in the best interest of a child or children are told by “the experts” that children, even those in very vulnerable situations are better off living with a parent/parents.
So what does one do late at night in the heart of our capital city when one comes across a baby, a toddler or a young child in the “care” of a parent/parents who are out of their minds on a cocktail of drink and drugs or whose behaviour is erratic while they seek out their next fix? What one does with great reluctance and angst is fail the child by not intervening and getting it to a place of safety because here in Ireland such direct interventions are not welcomed.
Mind you, these same children when adults will not thank us for our failure to protect them, nor will they understand how anyone could have argued that they were better off left in the care of parents who could not even care for themselves. – Yours, etc,