Peter Boshier makes a habit of speaking out. I wish more ,with knowledge of what is really going on, would. He is saying that the justice system needs to find better ways of dealing with under 14 year-olds.
Judge Peter Boshier, who has been a judge since 1988, made the politically charged statement at a foster care conference in Hamilton yesterday, where he said he was shocked at what he saw happening in families now compared with what he saw 19 years ago.
I am frequently shocked when I hear about what some 'children' do. Ramming pencils up bottoms of youngsters they want to intimidate for example. When I listened to Alan Duff speak last weekend it surprised me not one bit when he said he has only written about some of what goes on.
The Judge makes another utterance which should pass without comment. It should be a given but I now doubt it is shared by people who are in a position to change things.
"What concerns me about the present situation is that for every 12-year-old criminal there is a victim. It's the victim I am more concerned about."
Amen to that. Let's start directing our compassion towards the right people. Start putting some of these vicious types under supervision - and I don't mean out in the community. It was coincidentally 18 years ago when New Zealand adopted the ground breaking Family Group conference system and started steering youth away from court. Ron Mark chimes in;
"Of course family involvement must be sought, but this has to come to an end when that family proves that they cannot care for the child or make the decisions that are required."
But Boshier can have the last word;
"Unless we get this right, when they are 14 they are going to be in the Youth Court, and when they are 19 they are going to be murderers, and a lot of our murderers these days are young."
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1 comment:
'twelve year olds must be more accountable,' Really?
& their transgressions are due to 'dysfunctional families,' Really??
& 'methamphetamine,' Really???
So we organise/arrange society so we have a large percentage of two parent working famillies, too lacking in energy to effectively raise children; & beneficiaries: DPB's, sickness/invalids,& dole beneficiaries - lifestyles reknowned for their ability to generate preoccupations,loss of motivation & hence structure to life, depression, detachment, insularity- a lack of social involvement to moderate excess... & predominantly orientate our poorly socially-skilled, poorly educated into this lifestyle - i.e. those less skilled or not wishing, to be able to cope with it.
& then we disempower teachers in respect to the management of the progeny of such poorly socialised, poorly impulse controlled children, who respond neither to praise nor reprimand but can certainly impose & avoid aggressively... & then we look at increasingly disempowering parents & empowering kids further, (CYFSwatch attests to this) & in a general all encompassing manner in respect to repealing sec. 59 .. which will also disempower teachers further ... & after all this we're going to make 12 year olds more responsible/accountable for their own behaviour ... bit of a joke really, a naive, irresponsible & sick one. The void between reality and our policy makers has become a pathological reflection of this ... or is it in fact the cause????
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