By Robert Hart, Staff Reporter SHARON HAYE-WEBSTER, Member of Parliament for South Central St. Catherine, has once again stirred talks within the walls of Gordon House calling for the implementation of legislation allowing for the registration of sex offenders.
During Tuesday's sitting of Parliament, Mrs. Haye-Webster referred to an article published in The Star entitled 'Raped With a Stick', to the attention of her colleagues on both sides of the political divide.
The article related the experience of a woman who was allegedly abducted, tortured and sexually abused over a weekend in October.
In an impassioned plea, Mrs. Haye-Webster called on the House to seriously consider the implementation of a register for sex offenders, a call she has previously made.
"Another reason why I raise this issue is, this past weekend, in my own constituency, one person lost his life as a result of what you would almost call 'jungle justice' in the sense of taking action against a man who, it is alleged, has been consistently molesting a child," she said.
"You need to monitor them (sex offenders) to protect our children but also to give them the care that they need."
LONG-STANDING ACT
Mrs. Haye-Webster also lamented the lack of action taken on the 'long-standing' Sexual Offences Act.
After receiving thunderous applause from a clearly moved Parliament, Mrs. Haye-Webster was joined in her plea by Opposition member of Parliament, Karl Samuda and Government MP Portia Simpson Miller.
Mr. Samuda said the Opposition wished to associate itself with the sentiments and concerns express-ed. He also added that there was a growing problem of parents using their young children as a means of earning revenue while turning a 'blind eye' to the abuse they endure.
"What we really need to do (is) enact the kind of legislation that will bring those people to justice because it is an act that is not only destructive of the younger generation, it hits at the very basis of our morality," he said.
Mrs. Simpson Miller argued, also to the apparent approval of both sides of the House, that convicted rapists should have their names advertised in order to put communities on notice, "so that the communities can be aware that they are free again."
CONCERNS
But responding to the concerns, John Junor, the Minister of Health, noted that the Child Care and Protection Act, currently being debated by a joint select committee of Parliament, provides for an abuse register and additional penalties, as well as places responsibility on persons for reporting what they know or ought to have known of abuse against children.
"Those are matters covered within the ambit of the Act," he said, noting that the Ministry of Justice has also recently opened a victim support unit in Mandeville, Manchester. The unit, he added, is expected to be duplicated across the country with specialist services available to persons who have been abused.
