A Christmas wish for an end to child abuse
New Zealand’s Christmas wish should be for the rights of life and love and security of our children, writes
David Seymour’s right to die bill recently passed its first hurdle and made the front page of The Press on Thursday. However, Coroner Wallace Bain’s call to monitor children slipped back several pages in the same issue.
Seymour’s parliamentary bill promotes the end of suffering from terminal illness whereas the coroner’s call was for the rights of life for our children.
Contrasting dilemmas. A bill legalising voluntary euthanasia to ‘‘alleviate the needless suffering of those who face a cruel and painful death.’’ And, on page 6 a call for the rights of life for children, ‘‘Whatever it takes, whatever it costs we cannot allow this child abuse to continue’’ said Coroner Wallace Bain. Ironic, is it not? A consenting person’s right to make a choice of death over life and a defenceless child who has no choice of life over death.
However, mine is not to argue the case for euthanasia. Rather, it is to highlight our appalling child abuse record and to challenge the euphemism of our nations clean green image as it relates to the caring of our children.
We have failed and this must not and cannot be allowed to continue. We are murdering our children.
Don’t blame child abuse on a lack of money. Poverty is not the crime here. It does not wash. Countless couples and solo parents on Struggle Street cope under very difficult circumstances. Being angry is one thing. Bashing, maiming and killing children is another thing altogether.
Playing the blame game is futile. Who features most in the statistics? Is it Maori, Pakeha, or Pacific Islanders? ‘‘Lies, damned lies, and statistics.’’ It does not matter. We are all culpable and collectively as a nation and as our children’s guardians we are all now required to step up, speak up and, to make a societal shift to ensure our children’s safety and security.
Parenting education and support is vitally important. Amazing isn’t it? We can enforce legislation that requires that all vehicles require a current warrant of fitness and that they are roadworthy. A rigorous testing regime is undertaken at countless garages and testing stations nationwide.
You require a license to drive a vehicle and a learner’s license to embark on the adventure. Gaining that license takes time and requires candidates to demonstrate competency. Road safety affects the lives of others. Break the rules and you pay the price.
Becoming a parent requires no license. Should there be? God forbid, mention breaching any persons rights regarding their individual freedom and you are on a hiding to nothing.
However, mention the 61 little names on New Zealand’s roll of dishonour who have died as a result of non-accidental injuries and together we weep, mourn our loss and move on.
Names like Moko Rangitoheriri, Chris and Cru Kahui, Nia Glassie and many others. People and the system failed them. The ambulance at the bottom of the cliff is no longer an option.
Let us not mince words here. For once, please can we be honest with ourselves and acknowledge that not everything about good ole New Zealand and its rock star economy and clean green image is all that we need to get ahead. Our economy may be going in the right direction but is it a case of knowing the price of everything and the value of nothing?
Comparatively, we are killing and abusing our children at greater rates than most other countries.
Bugger the politics of the situation. New Zealanders are past trying to figure out which political party thinks they are right and have the answer to the problem. We are well past arguing the point in the parliamentary chamber. What is required is a bipartisan approach to solving this issue.
Politicians cannot solve this problem on their own. We as a community hold the key.
Talk is cheap. It is one thing to identify issues and to wax lyrical. What is more difficult to do is to identify solutions to New Zealand’s Achilles heel.
An important first step therefore is to heed the sensible call of Coroner Wallace Bain whose main recommendation is that children be monitored from birth to five years of age.
New Zealand’s Christmas wish should be for the rights of life and for the love and security of our children, our greatest future asset.
Our new year’s resolution should be to ensure that collectively as a nation that we all do our very best to make that a reality.
●➤ Darrell Latham is a retired senior University of Otago College Of Education lecturer. His research interests include the politics of education and he is a regular commentator on educational issues. Latham is also a Linwood-Central Heathcote Community Board member.