Infuriating beyond measure!
There was an article in the newspaper today http://bit.ly/6Yp6pf (in Norwegian), a man accused of child molestation while employed at a daycare center gets ONE (1) year jail sentence and NOK 25.000,- in fine.
I was and am enraged! I find it inexcusable that we as a society can condone the abuse of our children. There are no “small” transgressions, no such thing as a “little” molestation, there is plenty of research available showing the long-term effects of sexual abuse, for more information about the subject here is what wikipedia says.
I tweeted about this earlier today and ended up in a discussion with a person who honestly felt that it was the offender that was victimised by getting punished and that it was parents (such as myself) who traumatised the children by making a big deal about the abuse. He pointed out that this was a “small” transgression and that the kids may not be worse for wear. His core belief was that the man should get help and not punishment.
Now, I don’t entirely disagree, I too believe that offenders should receive treatment and follow-up and I can even agree that there may be situations where parents contribute to an escalation of a situation.
However, I do not believe that treatment is a “get out of jail free” card. We have a duty as a society to make sure that noone EVER abuses our children, our women, our men or even our pets. Yet, our children are particularly vulnerable, because they are children. It falls upon us to watch out for them, make sure they are safe. And appropriately punish those who transgress.
I know that the counter tweeter will take the following to underline his point about parents being “hysterical” but..
I will even go one step further, I believe in mandatory registration for sex offenders (something that will probably never happen in Norway), but I would like to know if a pedofile moves into my neighborhood. I honestly believe that every child has the right to grow up unmolested, we should be able to make sure that no person ever be employed to work with children if (s)he has committed a crime against children.
We are way behind the times in Norway, something the general level of jail sentences attests to.
Everyone is entitled to an opinion – no question – but at the core of this issue is the recognition of how destructive sexual abuse is, the long-term effects that may (though not always) lead to serious problems as adults.
