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February 14, 2005

Barnardos tells of Ulster's growing trade in child sex

February 14, 2005 [Belfast Telegraph] By Jonathan McCambridge

Children's charity Barnardos has warned about the growing number of young people being illegally brought to the province as child prostitutes.

The charity and the PSNI recently briefed the Policing Board on the growing problem of sexual exploitation of children through prostitution and trafficking.

Barnardos is running a campaign 'Beyond the Shadows' as well as awareness training programmes.

Jacqui Montgomery Devlin from Barnardos said: "Sexual exploitation is a hidden problem and just because people don't see it on the streets doesn't mean it is not happening here.

"Our task has been to initiate an awareness training programme on this and to date we have spoken to more than 1,000 people working in social and youth work, education, housing and members of the PSNI."

The charity also stressed the dangers of new technologies such as mobile phones and the Internet.

It said the use of such technologies has made the abuse of children through prostitution even easier to hide.

Detective Chief Inspector William McAuley said: "Police recognise that child sexual abuse throughout the UK has become a very significant issue for society.

"Recorded cases are increasing year on year and neither the process of crime recording, the national crime survey for the NI Crime Survey have picked up on the size of the problem.

"We know from research carried out by both statutory and non-statutory child protection agencies that somewhere around 70% of child sexual abuse does not come to the attention of the police. Of those cases that are reported only about 8% are cleared by way of criminal prosecution.

"It is important that statutory bodies now start directing resources towards pro-active rather than reactive initiatives to address this serious issue."

Policing Board vice-chairman Denis Bradley said: "The protection of children from abuse including sexual exploitation is the responsibility of all in the wider community."

Posted by Nancy at 08:35 PM | Comments (0)

Vicar talks about effects of abuse charges

February 14, 2005 [Herald Star]

STEUBENVILLE - Much has been said in the media and on the street in the past few years concerning the Catholic Church's handling of the sexual abuse charges filed against priests.

On Friday, Monsignor Kurt Kemo, vicar general director of child protection for the Diocese of Steubenville, talked with members of the Steubenville Rotary Club about these allegations and what the church and local Catholic officials are doing to prevent further abuse.

Kemo said the charges brought to light in 2000 forced the church to repent of its past sins and work to make sure they did not happen in the future.

Kemo said that, locally, the diocese has filed more than 18,000 background checks, including those for priests, teachers and other people involved in work with children.

He stressed the importance of families getting involved and educating themselves in the fight against abuse.

"When we had a meeting to discuss ways to prevent child abuse, only five parents showed up. That is disturbing. The abuse by priests was picked up on by the media, but the truth is, abuse is happening in all areas where children are involved, especially in homes with stepparents," said Kemo.

Kemo said he was proud that the Catholic Church in the United States was on the forefront of addressing the sexual abuse battle.

"The church in the United States has shown an absolute intolerance for the abuse, and I am proud to be a part of that," said Kemo.

He said that many precautions are being taken, though no cases have come forward in this area that point to abuse by church workers.

"For example, we now mandate that two adults or persons of authority be present when there are children involved. There has been some backlash for this rule, but we feel it is important to eliminate any scenario where abuse could take place," said Kemo.

Kemo added that in the fight against abuse, citizens must err on the side of caution.

"There is a fine line between discipline and abuse, and when it comes to coaching, there is a fine line between motivation and abuse. If a person in authority sees that line coming close to being crossed, he or she has a responsibility to report it," he said.

Posted by Nancy at 10:43 AM | Comments (0)