Experts work to find why many abusers offend again

By EUGENE BINGHAM AND CATHERINE MASTERS

A low IQ, rape fantasies and the death of a parent may be clues to why some paedophiles keep abusing even after they are caught.

Understanding why many paedophiles cannot stop offending has become a major challenge for counsellors and psychologists running treatment programmes.

A report by the Department of Corrections found that graduates of the Kia Marama treatment programme for child-sex offenders had a reconviction rate of about 10 per cent, compared with 22 per cent for prisoners who had not been through the programme.

Analysis of those who reoffended found that they held disturbing views, including an acceptance of rape myths, were unable to empathise, and internalised their anger.

"Reoffenders tend to have a lower IQ," said the report, Into the Light, published in 1999. Their victims tended to be boys, and there was a high likelihood their offending began in childhood.

"They are nearly three times more likely than their non-reconvicted counterparts to report the death of a parent or caregiver during childhood, and five times more likely to be judged as having a severe literacy problem."

Counsellors who deal with offenders say about half have been sexually abused as children themselves and nearly all will have suffered violence or witnessed it.

The department says about 90 men go through the Kia Marama unit and its sister programme, Te Piriti, each year.

"In general, approximately 25 per cent of men who have committed a sexual offence against a child commit a further sexual offence in the 10 years following release," said a department spokeswoman.

But inmates who had been through the programme had half the reoffending rate.

John McCarthy, director of the community-based Safe treatment programme for child-sex offenders, said that most of the 250 prisoners released each year would benefit from the programmes. "The sad thing is that it's the high-profile and inevitably high-risk cases that get the publicity."

"It would be a far better message to say that of the other 250 that are released from prison each year, the majority can be treated successfully, and let's do that so the public can feel less anxiety."

Safe has about 60 adults and 60 adolescent offenders in its treatment programmes but the waiting lists are long.

"Many times we are subsidising the costs of our adult programmes out of money that really should be spent on adolescents," said Mr McCarthy.

"We face a Hobson's choice, because we either close an adult programme and put 60 child-sex offenders on the street, or we use some of the adolescent money, which is relatively reasonably funded, to support the organisation so we can continue to run both programmes.

"It's just increasingly annoying to have this fight about money each year and to run the thing on a shoestring when the public is understandably anxious and concerned - and something can be done about it."