Evaluate two Irish child abuse inquiries from the perspective of how they have influenced public policy.
For past two decades, 29 cases of child abuse reviews and inquiries have published in Ireland. The Irish Constitution illustrates the family as primary, natural and fundamental group in the society. The aim of this essay is to implement several theories regarding psychology of family relationship to various reports. The essay will focus on the psychology of family dysfunction and functioning, risks indicators or warning signs, the power in the family life as well as the family strengths. The essay will focus on the two child labor cases, Roscommon Child Care Case and the Kilkenny Incest Investigation. Since, these two cases have significant impact on the Irish public policies. The Roscommon Child Care Inquiry formed by the Health Service Executive (HSE). On January 2009, mother of six children was convicted of incest, ill-treatment and neglect. Therefore, the mother was sentenced for seven years imprisonment. This case was reported widely and it influenced the concern of the public regarding child abuse issues. On the other hand, Kilkenny Incest Investigation describes a case where a father abuses her child both sexually and physically for the period of thirteen years. These two cases have immense impact on the Ireland Constitution and force the constitution to make several changes in the structure and policies regarding child abuse in the domestic environment. The essay describes that how the impact of these two cases has influenced public policies over the years.
In the Roscommon Case, the parenting style is completely uninvolved. Since, they often left their children to do whatever they want and went out to different places. It was identified that the parents does not have the capacity to manage their children correctly in this case. Therefore, problems arise regarding the maintenance of the children. Problems like their first children has immense nappy rash due to complete negligence of the parents (Buckley and Nolan 2015). In addition, the parent has not shown their expected concern over the safety of their children. Therefore, children basically has no safety in front of fire and other factors. On lots of occasions, children were not encouraged by the parents and baby was completely not stimulated. For that reason, the children have very bad trunk control (Burns and MacCarthy 2012). The case also illustrates that the parent was addicted to the drugs and alcohol that ultimately results into the confusion of the role. The Kilkenny case reflects parent’s trauma of losing their child. In this case, Psychological effect of losing a child affects eventually affects the parental style and influence parent to abuse the child physically and sexually. The case illustrates that the affected child and her sister were not provided the basic care they needed or deserved. In the Kilkenny case, father of the affected child played the role of fear and pain for the children. In this case, relationship between the victim’s mother and father found to be very weak. Therefore, it influences the victim’s father to abuse his daughter physically and sexually.
In case of the Anglo-Saxon society, they need to play the responsibility traditionally instilled to their culture related to bringing up their children. In this type of social setting, the parents are always required to look after the physical, mental, and emotional needs of the children on the basis of providing them comfortable and warm family environment. The parents are always needed to fulfil the educational needs of their children in a mean to prepare them to engage in the society effectively and be able to satisfy their adult responsibilities in the future (Da Roit 2010). However, looking at the current examples and some previous scenarios, it is confirmed that the social and economic structures are changing rapidly. Multiple cases of live-in relationships, single parenting, and divorces within the country are adequate enough to suggest that the social changes are modifying and altering the economic and social structure of the overall society (Daniel, Wassell and Gilligan 2010). It can be acknowledged that the social structure is affected by the child rearing responsibilities, which insist the development of a concept that the recent day parents are not so committed to their children like their predecessors.
With the help of the cases that are considered for developing this essay, it can be acknowledged that different individual families in Ireland in the collective context demonstrate highly deviant behaviour subjected to their children, as they often involve in the process of neglecting their children and abusing them in different forms categorised in mental and physical types (Dworsky 2015). Despite the majority of the population in the countrybelieves in a society where children are treated as a precious factor, these particular cases can be observed for their existence.
The similar scenario can be observed from the information composed in the case studies known as Roscommon Child Care and Kilkenny Incest Investigation. Both of the case studies from different course of time within the country suggested the fact that children are vulnerable to the abuses of different types and some other types of tortures which affects them in mentally or physically, even outside their domestic environments. These certain abuses and tortures are happening from the decades caused by the variety of reasons (Dziegielewski 2013). In order to identify the basic reason behind these processes, it is required to investigate the social service infrastructure of the UK, which is known to be the most integral element of the social welfare. This certain infrastructure is highly significant as the deliverables are made by emphasising onsafeguarding and protecting the children within the society from their abusive parents (Stavans 2010). As a result of that, certain approaches from the different governments can be seen. The governments from the perspective of both labour and conservative, have providing their continuous efforts to design and implement policies and procedures for safeguarding and ensuring wellbeing of not only the children, but also the young adults and adolescents. In Ireland, there are different social work infrastructures, which are increasing significantly to provide high priority protection services to the children for preventing different kinds of buses.
By the way of conducting the review of Roscommon Child Care Case, it is ascertained that children from different backgrounds within the country are subjected to experience wide range of mental, emotional, or physical abuses, despite plenty availability of policies and legislations and protective social case facilities for safeguarding and protecting them (Tadrissi and Russell 2015). In case of Kilkenny Incest Investigation, it is considered to be the first example of child abuse continued on a regular basis as reported by the national media. This particular scenario had driven the formation and introduction of Every Child Matters (ECM) programme, which is suitable for investigating the policies and other requirements related to the child care within the country while providing utmost emphasis on the security and safety of the children of entire society. After the case of Roscommon Child Care, the sudden changes and modifications to the social care policies and services can be observed. In this certain situation, it is required to mention that the social services and facilities are altered to ensure the risks associated with the children identified proper to facilitate the mandatory assessment (Dworsky 2015). The adequate needs related to the security and protection for the children are recognised on the basis of the significant assessments and these are planned to provide to them by using relevant interventions.
This case describes that the lack of capacity of the parents play an important role for child neglectful situations and possible abuses. In the Roscommon Child Care Inquiry case parent’s role confusion influence their older children to took on the role of their parents and care his brothers and sisters instead of being children. Therefore, the older child who is about ten years old was forced to act as a babysitter. Obviously, this will have an adverse impact on the relationships between children and parents. Another role confusion that the Roscommon case illustrates that role of the disciplinarian (Clifford and Casey 2013). As the father of these children was heavily depended on the drugs and alcohol, he behaved wrongly to the children. For that reason, the children viewed him as a source of fear. The mother was also addicted to alcohol and was completely not interested to care of her children. This influences the role confusion. The Roscommon case also illustrates a strong relationship among the siblings as the ignorance of their parents brought out the best of each other (O’Reilly and Dolan 2015). However, this might have adverse impact on the relationship on their parents. As the parent perceived that, the bonding might be a threat that has influences the child abuse.
There have been several inquiries regarding child abuse within the domestic setting to identify the ill-treatment of the children. The Roscommon case was among the top of them. In 2010, Roscommon inquiry was published. It highlighted several failures of the government authorities to effectively intercept in the life of those children who are suffering from parental negligence and abuse. For example, the children were suffering from complete negligence from the parents but were not identified immediately. The first major domestic child abuse inquiry in the Ireland was The Kilkenny Incest investigation inquiry. In 1993, Kilkenny report illustrates circumstances where a father physically and sexually abuses his daughter over 13years period. This case spread as a shockwave across the country and widely considered as the catalyst for an overhaul for child protection services. This case made a number of strong recommendations that highlighted the importance of effective legal structure against domestic child abuse. The Dublin report 2009, expresses its concern over the response regarding the complaints, knowledge and suspicions of sexual abuses of children (Collins 2013). However, in contrast to the Dublin report, Ryan report suggested that the inquiry commission evaluating the Dublin Archdiocese has no mandate to identify whether abuse is occurred or not. The Dublin Archdiocese is dealing with sexual abuse of the children (Mulkeen 2012). However, the Ryan commission report was the largest inquiry of the states abuse of the children in the institutional care. It also provides relevant information about issue of child abuse in the home as well. The major inquires concerned with the handling the complaints of child abuse. The Ferns Inquiry was established to investigate complaints and allegations against child sexual abuse in domestic environment. This inquiry identifies over 100 allegations that has performed in the domestic structure.
In case of Kilkenny inquiry case, the authorities knew the affected children. Still the involvement of the HSE with the family felt short of removing child abuse. This inquiry has made lots of recommendations for the child protection services that describes ways to secure the more effective handling of domestic child abuse complaints by the HSE. However, it is not within the remit to recommend policy change (Conroy 2012). This inquiry highlighted that the government was completely committed to hold a referendum on inserting the rights of the children into the Irish Constitution. It has changed to ensure the voice of the affected children has heard when courts are considering the case that affects them. This change in the policy was welcomed immensely (Featherstone et al. 2012). As this highlighted the evidence that the failure to hear, consulting with the six children was considerably notable in Kilkenny case. The HSE ensures all possible procedures and policies are complaint with regards to the United Nation Convention about the Rights of the Children. This also made recommendations about how the process of the court could be improved. So that most of the child can get more protection against the domestic child abuse issue. The Kilkenny case also reflects the lack of familiarity with the laws regarding the domestic child labor issue (Halton and Wilson 2013).
Since, both the Roscommon and Kilkenny inquiry reports suggested for constitutional reform to give protection to the rights of the children in the Irish Constitution. Surprisingly, reports regarding other child abuses do not reiterate this recommendation. However, they highlighted general points regarding child abuse laws that need to be reform and review. One explanation for this situation is that the Roscommon and Kilkenny inquires concerned intervention by the state in the family and it is in the area that the Constitution has deemed particularly deficient (Hanafin 2013). As the Roscommon and Kilkenny reprts highlighted that the present constitutional framework represents a hierarchy of the rights that can be operated against the rights of the children and it is necessary to insert the right of the children into the Constitution in response (McGregor 2014). This is described with the reference to the Child Care Act, which shows that the children identification in need of protection and care, the HSE must consider the welfare of the children as the first and most important consideration. However, this has to be implemented by giving due regards to the parents rights under the Constitution.
The hierarchy of the constitution of children’s rights is clear. Even though vast portion of the parents are caring and loving towards their child, translating these facts into the constitutional principle goes for long ways (McGing 2014). Although these two are the extreme case, the Roscommon childcare inquiries support this fact. Of course, major portion of these cases regarding child abuse does not concern the family-sate paradigm and a question arises that to what relevance reform of the constitution has to the child treatment more generally (Kennedy 2014). Oireachtas committee proposed to make number of key changes to the constitutions existing situation. First, it proposed equal rights and treatment for all the children regardless of whatever status of their parents’ marital status. It makes clear that, as autonomous human being children right must have to be reserved (Kilkelly 2012). This provision gives new factors by placing a duty on the state to vindicate and recognize the rights of the children as right holders. These two inquiries influence the child rights to care and protect. Both these inquiry bring about explicit recognition and real change to the rights of the children under the Irish constitution.
Conclusion:
The essay aims to analyze the child abuse inquiries in the Ireland of recent years. It began by summarizing the findings regarding the inquiry involving abuse of the children within the family. The focus of the study is on the two famous inquiries in the Irish constitution. Summarizing all the reports, few issues emerges as the worthy of getting special attention as a ways to ensure that the children feel the impact of these inquiries both tomorrow and today. These changes in the policies are robust system to monitor and inspect the children care, mandatory reporting of the domestic abuse of the child and constitutional structure reform. As the above two inquiries tries to show that no measures of the child abuse is straightforward, it provide in isolation, a panacea, to the problem of providing effective child protection from abuse in home. However, these recommendations together identified the importance of the changes in the policies in the other child abuse reports. It represents the beginning of a long lasting legacy for those children who are victims of abuse by their parents or families.
References:
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