Sunday (March 18) marked National Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE) Awareness Day across the UK. CSE is a particularly horrendous form of sexual abuse that involves the manipulation or coercion of young people into sexual activity.
Unfortunately, this exploitation of children can often be very difficult to spot. Young people who are being abused can be tricked into believing they are in a loving relationship. They can often be given gifts, money or drugs so they become dependent on the person abusing them and can also be intimidated and threatened so they comply with demands.
It can happen to children regardless of their age, location, background or sexuality. With the rising use of smart phones and tablets, more young people are communicating behind closed doors, making it ever more difficult for parents to know what their children are doing. The rise in the ‘selfie’ culture and use of social media could also be fuelling the problem with young people putting themselves at greater risk of sexual exploitation by sharing personal information. In just six months (April to October 2017) there have been 37 recorded offences by the PSNI of sexual communication with a child and in 2016/17 the PSNI has also recorded, on average, more than five sexual offences against children every day in Northern Ireland.
We would urge parents to educate themselves about the potential dangers online so they can talk to their children.
Parents need to be alert to any changes in their child’s behaviour that could suggest they are being targeted or abused and it is vitally important they have open and honest conversations with their children to enable young people to talk to someone if they feel worried or scared about anything they’ve been involved in.
Members of the public also play a big part in helping to protect children and we ask everyone to make themselves aware of the signs of child sexual exploitation and, if they see them, to know where to go for help.
There is a wealth of guidance and information on how to talk to children about the internet, including how to tackle conversations about sexting, on the NSPCC website.
The dedicated NSPCC CSE helpline is on 0800 389 1701 while children worried about anything that is happening to them can contact Childline on 0800 1111.
NEIL ANDERSON
Head of NSPCC in Northern Ireland
Ireland facing more powerful foe than British Empire
‘The Republic guarantees religious and civil liberty, equal rights and equal opportunities to all its citizens and declares its resolve to pursue the happiness and prosperity of the whole nation and all its parts, cherishing all the children of the nation equally.’
I am a member of an Irish Republican human rights movement whose title, ‘Cherish all the Children of the Nation Equally’, is taken from that most fundamental declaration in the Proclamation of the Republic of Ireland read by Pádraig Pearse on Easter Monday, April 24 1916.
That signalled the beginning of yet another Irish rebellion, another blow for freedom against what was then a mighty British Empire.
Another Easter and a century and two years later our nation is facing an even more powerful and more ruthless foe, the abortion empire.
Our people are being asked to repeal the article in the Irish constitution, the Eighth Amendment, which re-affirms the pledge of the Proclamation of 1916 guaranteeing the right to life of our unborn brothers and sisters.
I believe that the people of Ireland today, faithful and courageous and patriotic as the men of 1916, will face down those terrible insidious global forces who preach infanticide in the guise of compassion for mothers.
Mothers are revered in Ireland. We must protect them with all the resources at our disposal from the ignominy and perversion of abortion.
Ireland’s contribution to the world has always been disproportionate to our numbers and is recognised by the millions all over the globe who joined us in the celebration of St Patrick’s Day.
Let us make a most vital contribution to human society today by inspiring all nations with our determination to retain our constitutional protection for our mothers and their babies and by remaining true to the pledge given by the men of 1916 – to cherish all the children of our beloved country equally.
ANNE BROLLY
Dungiven, Co Derry
National housing shortage
With a view to alleviating the national house shortage, a priority should be to identify population declining villages having partially developed “ghost estates” that do not need to go through long, drawn out land purchase, planning permission processes and the provision of utility services. These estates could be compulsorily purchased cheaply, completed quickly and handed over to tenants or purchasers. A requirement for this type of enterprise is accessibility – bus or train routes should be extended from existing routes to facilitate people needing to commute to the nearest towns or city for employment and post-primary education. I have in mind as examples, Boherbue and Ballinagree in north Cork. This type of enterprise would inject new life into so many declining rural communities.
JOE TERRY
Blarney, Co Cork
Regrettable step
I was interested to see the photo of the Israeli Ambassador to the UK, Mark Regev, in the Linen Hall Library (March 14). How sad it was to see the great Linen Hall Library used as a back drop to his visit to Belfast. With its great literature collection dating back to the 1700s and its original mission to promote knowledge, I feel to welcome Mark Regev was a regrettable step. Before becoming Israeli ambassador to the UK, Mark Regev was the person tasked with justifying the invasions of Gaza from 2008 to 2014, resulting in thousands of Palestinian deaths and putting large swathes of Gaza back to the stone-age after daily Israeli bombardment.
SIMON ARTHERTON
Strangford, Co Down
Less focus on PSNI
Stephen Nolan has recently given the victims of clerical abuse a platform on his show and has focused attention on the Catholic Church and the schools which the victims attended but there is less focus on the PSNI who were informed about the clerical child abuse in 1996 and did nothing about it.
The PSNI must say why they did nothing.
LIAM ARCHIBALD
Draperstown, Co Derry
EU backing for Ireland
The president of the European Commission, Jean Claude Juncker, (March 14) said the 27 member states stand firm and united when it comes to Ireland. That to me is very good for the people of Ireland.
With the UK departure due in just over a year I only hope that we will have no customs or hold ups on the island of Ireland, especially with the support from the 27 member states.
DENIS McCRORY
Castlederg, Co Tyrone
