JCLA Request.

The Jersey Care Leavers Association have issued a request to all States Members and is re-produced below in it's entirety (photo's added by VFC). Will (can) our States Members do the right thing?

Request to all States Members – Tuesday 1^st March 2011

Today you will debate whether or not the decision to hold a Committee of Inquiry into Historical Child Abuse should be upheld or overturned.

We feel that a decision not to proceed will have disastrous repercussions, not only on the Island’s reputation as a whole which is already at a very low point, but also the general public who are, and will be even more dissatisfied. There is a large groundswell of public opinion that feels that the promised enquiry should be held. However the people who will emerge from this suffering the most damage will be those survivors who have been waiting for this COI to happen to enable them to have their chance to put their side of the story, get answers as to why they were failed by the States of Jersey, and in some small way find justice which they have been denied thus far. This is what the victims want despite the draft report stating that in some instances it will still not suffice.

Then and only then will there be some form of closure for them.

Contrary to Chief Minister Le Sueur’s statement to the States Assembly, the JCLA had not been party to any discussions or given any chance to provide input into the decision to drop the Inquiry Indeed it was at the very 11^th hour on the morning that the statement was made that the Chair of the JCLA was made aware. Surely the very people who have been affected by the Historical abuse, and those who support them should have had the opportunity to put a case forward for this to proceed.

Given that a very large proportion of the abused had no faith at all in anything connected with the States of Jersey, this action has confirmed that lack of faith a thousand fold.

If this proposition fails the issue is not going to go away. Like a large boil it will fester and fester until the appropriate action is taken to burst it open.  The survivors have every intention to keep the momentum going. To date we have been very, very patient and acted with dignity in anticipation of this Inquiry and have behaved more honourably than some States Members have in this regard.  However there comes a time when enough is enough, patience is exhausted, and that time is now.

Most of you will be parents/grandparents. Have you ever stopped to imagine if one of your own children or grandchildren were abused, either mentally, physically or sexually? No doubt you would be outraged, dismayed and seeking justice against the perpetrator. Your child/grandchild would turn to their family for support and comfort which is the natural course to take. Have you ever stopped to think that those who were in the care of the States of Jersey had no-one to turn to, no-one to comfort or support them, no-one to try and take some of the pain and hurt away, and now the last hope of attempting to seek some form of comfort and closure is being made unavailable to them courtesy of the Council of Ministers.

How many of you have made any effort to speak to any of the survivors to listen to their experiences and how they feel? We would suspect that the answer is not many.

IT IS NOT ACCEPTABLE

If these were animals that had been harmed and had cruelty displayed towards them there would be public outrage, yet when it is real, living human beings it appears the CoM dismiss them without a second thought. We are urging you to give serious thought to this today, to examine your consciences and hearts and vote for this Inquiry to be sanctioned for the right and just reasons we have outlined, and not for the wrong reasons that have been given for not going ahead, and really have no valid basis at all.

Finally, we would like to just take a couple of examples from a blog which has approached this issue with a very fair and objective approach. The parts reproduced here are with the permission of the blog owner and are very relevant to the situation in Jersey at this present moment in time.

What is important is we give a voice to those who might not otherwise have the opportunity to present their views.” Scottish Government spokeswoman.

“The physical, emotional and sexual abuse that has taken place in Scotland’s residential care homes – perpetrated by the very people who should have been providing support –must never be forgotten. We are demonstrating our commitment through action, and that’s why we are providing a new support service for adults who experienced childhood abuse in care.” Adam Ingram, Minister for Children

The Review pointed to an urgent need to act to preserve historical records, ensuring that former residents could access records and information about their location. Mr Shaw’s recommendations included noting that records, often scattered, should be properly collated: “The Government should commission a review of public records legislation to ensure it is appropriate to meet the records and information needs of Scotland, not least, the needs of former residents and researchers”.. In his conclusion, he addressed the importance to the historical record of the victims being heard, even if those who abused them may no longer be living:

Time and time again in the course of the Review I came upon people, stories and records highlighting the need for us all to recognise and to keep reminding ourselves that children are the most valuable yet the most vulnerable group in society. Our responsibility to respect them, to care for them, to protect them, to acknowledge and respond to their needs and rights can never be taken lightly, or patronisingly. Wherever child abuse occurs it is intolerable, a self indulgence in its ugliest form. Whenever it occurs where children are placed for safety, it is even more despicable. Those who experienced abuse in the past need to be heard, to know society supports them in speaking out, and that their experiences are recognised and addressed.

“There are many challenges to finding out about our past and the process is even more daunting when those experiences were bad. The reaction to our search can be defensive and cynical. The need to know can be viewed with insensitivity, rather than respect. The past can be dismissed as something which is over and done with, rather than as significant to our present. Learning from our mistakes is a sign of maturity, an indication that we want to do better, to do so for all who were, or are, children in the care of the state.”

I think those words are well worth bearing in mind. We can too easily dismiss the past as something over and done with, and unless those who have suffered abuse can find a voice, and have their pain respected, we have yet to learn from our mistakes. In the meantime, I would recommend a visit to their website, and see their National Strategy.

In conclusion therefore what we are asking quite simply that you think long and hard, examine the rights and wrongs of this issue, and allow those who have been very sadly let down by the States of Jersey, whether it be 3 years ago, or 33 years ago to see this Inquiry go ahead.

Thank you (End)

Let us hope that the States members will examine their consciences before voting!