Keep children off sex offenders list

SEVERAL ministries yesterday agreed that citizens should be able to access a sex offenders register but minors who commit sexual offences should be excluded from the public’s glare.

This was the sentiment expressed yesterday at a public sitting of the Senate’s Special Select Committee on the Sexual Offences (Amendment) Bill 2019 at Tower D, Wrightson Road, Port of Spain.

Appearing before the Clarence Rambharat-chaired committee were officials from the Office of the Prime Minister and the Ministries of Foreign Affairs, Social Development and Education.

OPM permanent secretary (PS) Jacqueline Johnson said, “It is important to have a registry and for offenders to be known to the public. But we agree that the public not to have access to the list of children who are sex offenders. “We certainly don’t want such information on children to be made public any time.”

Ministry of Social Development PS Jacinta Bailey-Sobers agreed that adult sex-offenders should be made known to the community. She then suggested the details of murderers be similarly publicised. The PS admitted the public naming of sex offenders could complicate their re-integration back into society in a small country like this, but said on balance her staff has leaned towards such publicity.

“But not for child offenders,” she added. Her ministry’s legal officer Savita Birbal said New York City classifies its offenders into three tiers, for which the public can find out just the zip code of level one offenders but the full address of level two and three offenders.

Attorney General Faris Al-Rawi said the bill itself says details of child offenders will not be made public.

He added that even if a minor was convicted abroad as an adult, if he’s under 18 years his details will not be published in TT. Committee member Paul Richards suggested the offenders registry also include domestic violence perpetrators.

Member Anita Haynes asked about counselling available for children. In reply, Ministry of Education senior school social worker Kimberley Salvary said each secondary school has a guidance officer, but three primary schools share one guidance officer.

She said that at both primary and secondary levels, one social worker served three or four schools. Rambharat alleged an under-reporting of sex offences, prompting Vidya Pooransingh, head of National Family Services, to blame this on fear, shame and economic dependence. The committee next sits next Tuesday morning.