August 15, 2013
Poverty ignored in abuse plan
Mana leader Hone Harawira says new proposals to tackle child abuse ignore the major causes.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett wants to change the law to allow suspected abusers to be barred from contact with children even if charges are not proven.
She’s also wanting mandatory checks for people working with children.
Mr Harawira says the biggest abuser of children is the government because of its economic and social policies that ignore the link between child abuse and poverty.
"You give people jobs. You give people a decent income. You create an environment where people are proud to go to work in the morning, are proud to get up, are proud to feel they can feed their children, are proud of their place in the world. That's what you do if you want to change the situation we are facing right now. The problem is that this Government simply doesn’t care," he says.
Mr Harawira says the new law will criminalise actions of people who don’t have the resources to get out of the situation they are in.
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