Help us fight child abuse, CYF tells community

3.30pm

Child, Youth and Family (CYF) today called on New Zealanders to help it fight the third-worst levels of child abuse in the developed world.

More children per head of population die from maltreatment in New Zealand than in all but two OECD (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) countries, according to figures released yesterday by the United Nations children's agency Unicef.

CYF spokeswoman Audrey Barber told NZPA it was very disappointed to see New Zealand near the bottom of the Unicef charts.

Only a small proportion of the about 10 young children who died of maltreatment annually came to CYF attention, she said.

"That's something the department is very concerned about," she told NZPA.

"We don't know of them, so it's a concern to us that more referrals aren't made to us.

"We want to encourage the community to be aware of children at risk, to intervene and to report to us or the police if they are worried about children in their community."

National Party MP Katherine Rich said CYF was already overworked, short of social workers, and had more than 2600 unallocated cases on its books.

The Government social security policy of building better lives for children was not happening, she said.

Notifications to CYF about potential child abuse rose by 15 per cent to nearly 32,000 a year in 2003, she said.

"This Government's record is dismal," she said.

"Labour has failed to implement recommendations in a December 2000 report by Principal Youth Court Judge Mike Brown and all the while the CYF waiting list has been growing."

New Zealand First MP Barbara Stewart said she was shocked but not surprised by the statistics.

"We see ourselves as a peaceful and caring people, this report has shown that to be wrong," she said.

"We must work to change our attitude and the Government has to work to ensure that children have access to their basic rights -- a good start in life.

"Surely a safe environment for our children is more important than tinkering around with 'fart' taxes and pontificating on the world stage."

Christchurch-based Family Help Trust, which works with high risk children and their families, said help was needed to stop children dying.

Chairperson Sally Thompson was disappointed the Government had yet to recognise the value and success of organisations like the trust, and fund them accordingly.

"No one can be 100 per cent sure that if these child killers and their families had been part of a preventative programme such as ours, these children would still be alive," she said.

"But we believe the obvious risks are reduced by offering an early intervention preventative service."

In the report New Zealand scored third worst of 27 OECD countries in the annual number of deaths per 100,000 children under 15 from maltreatment.

Only the United States and Mexico (both 2.2 deaths per 100,000) fared worse.

Poverty and stress, along with drug and alcohol abuse, were cited as factors closely associated with child abuse and neglect.

The New Zealand rate of 1.3 child deaths per 100,000 was 13 times greater than the best rate -- that of Spain, Unicef said in the report into child deaths in rich countries.

Unicef New Zealand advocacy manager Beth Wood said the numbers involved were quite small.

- NZPA