ᔥ Stuff.co.nz
Anne Tolley is taking aim at kiddy fiddlers and wants to create a register, but the opposition parties are all into cuddling up to paedos:
Opposition parties are challenging the need for a sex offenders’ register, saying they often become public and are historically prone to mistakes which can devastate innocent people’s lives.
Police Minister Anne Tolley is considering introducing such a register, and police and the Corrections Department began work on proposals earlier this year after it was revealed a convicted paedophile was working as a teacher.
The register will not be open to the public and will only be viewed by officials with security clearance.
Both Labour and the Greens say it is a populist move and justice officials already closely monitor sex offenders.
Greens justice spokesman David Clendon said the register would open the door to witch hunts and “unreasonable attention being paid to some of the releasees”.
Labour and the Greens are right, this would be a very popular move. Not so popular will be their opposition to it. It seems though that as Labour’s poll rating fail to move they are seeking support from the margins, amongst criminals and paedos.
Labour’s justice spokesman Charles Chauvel said Labour would want to see evidence there was a need for a register.
“It’s all very well to say let’s have a sex offenders’ register for officials but what we need to do is be satisfied it actually served some purpose.”
A register was a “slippery slope”, he said.
“You start with an undertaking it would be a private document used for internal purposes and then in a year or two it’s a full blown public document.”
Chauvel said the Government’s justice policies were “law and order window dressing” which would make “little difference on the street”.
Charles would be shocked to learn that most people on the street would support not having a register of sex offenders just so long as we can hang them from lamp-posts.