THE EDITOR, Sir:THE ARTICLE on child abuse in state homes in The Sunday Gleaner was enlightening. The article also stated that the Children's Services Division is taking the necessary actions needed, and that there is referral of children to specialists and intervention. If this is so, what then accounts for the very serious problems experienced by some of the children in state care as outlined in the article?
We would like answers to the following questions with respect to the staff who work in these institutions. What criteria are used to select the persons who work with the children? Is there a statutory requirement that social services staff specialising in the care of children have the appropriate qualifications in child care before carrying out the difficult and demanding duties in this field? Is the staff continually motivated by management, and are they provided with a clear framework for their decisions?
We also have questions with respect to the abusers of children. What arrangements are there to identify children with serious behavioural problems, and those with risk of offending? The article reported serious and continuing cases of child sexual abuse by adults and other children. We feel that the principle of 'innocent until proven guilty' may at times need to be sacrificed for the immediate and practical protection of children in possible danger.
It is not always possible to achieve a position of absolute certainty; at times, there may be little or no physical evidence that the child has been abused because there is no third party corroboration available. Emo-tional abuse may be even more difficult to identify. Neverthe-less, if children are to be protected, decisions will have to be made about whether abuse has occurred. No one wants to misjudge an innocent person, but neither should we use the lack of absolute certainty as an excuse for not exercising judgement to protect children.
We appreciate that the Chil-dren's Services Division has a very difficult job to do, and is not able to effectively manage the critical problems in state homes for various reasons. We suggest that the division let the country know what kind of help is required. The country also needs to be prepared not only to criticise, but to offer that help.
I am, etc.,
ANGELA RAMSAY,
Farquharson Institute of Public Affairs
8 Lyncourt, Kingston 8
Via Go-Jamaica
