Lessons from Soham

I do not know what was more shocking, the news that two schoolgirls had been killed by their school caretaker or that this killer had been investigated in some form or other at least nine times for some form of sexually abusive behaviour with underage girls besides rape.

True, he hadn't been found guilty but, surely, you and I do not go around being suspected of abusing children nine times! It is not normal, is it? So how did it all slip through? An inquiry has been launched but it once again shows how we cannot be vigilant enough so far as our kids are concerned.

Strangely and sadly, those who abuse children often try to find work near or with children. So our checks have to be extremely thorough. When the school made their enquiries before recruiting this sick monster, they had to check out, via the police, any convictions, cautions and other relevant information. Ian Huntley had not been cautioned or convicted, so it is under "other relevant information" that these facts should have come to light but they may apparently have been deleted under data protection guidelines.

How rigorous are our checks here of people, including members of the clergy, who teach kids some form of sport, in private schools and associations like the scouts and girl guides?

How thorough are we? If such snakes get through the checks we do, it must make us doubly willing to check out anyone who comes into contact with children. And not just once but periodically too.

Why is society in general so uncomfortable and so seemingly unwilling to convict people for sex offences? If a woman is raped, she is usually considered to have provoked it. People get angry and kill each other and we convict. But when they abuse each other sexually (and it is usually abuse by men of women and children, though this is by no means always the case) we almost look away.

Perhaps the problem is with the judgments. Perhaps the problem is with our perception of what constitutes a crime. But something is certainly wrong. Do any of us expect people who have abused children to be sent to prison for 35 years? No we don't. But how is killing a loan shark bully less bad than sexually molesting children? One ends a life but the other maims a life too. Which is worse?

Do we have a register of known paedophiles in Malta? Is it accessible? Is it protected under data protection now? Who matters more, the child or the paedophile?

Will we learn any lessons from what went wrong at Soham? It seems that Ian Huntley was one of life's loners, sticking near younger girls even when he was a young boy. The UK has had a lot of experience in the field of checking out individuals who work with kids and Ian Huntley still slipped through. I hope those responsible for such matters in the ministries of education and of social policy will take the necessary steps to ensure that proper checks are made and that the police cooperate with them fully in these matters.

Things may be rosy here, I don't know. But as a parent I would like to feel reassured that those who work with children in any way in Malta and in Gozo are thoroughly vetted, not only for convictions but for any form of investigation they might have undergone over any sexual allegations. Our children deserve that at least.