MORE DETAIL NEEDED ON CHILD STRIP SEARCH PROTOCOLS

Concerns Over Children’s Rights Remain

The Tasmanian Greens today called for the full public release of new protocols relating to police strip searches on children.

Greens Police spokesperson Paul O’Halloran MP said that information released by Tasmania Police yesterday was light on detail and did not appear to address concerns over the rights of children.

“All we have seen so far is three fairly vague dot points in a media release,” Mr O’Halloran said

“When I raised this matter in Police Budget Estimates two weeks ago, I sought, and received a commitment that the new protocols would be released publicly. A media release summary is not public disclosure in any book.”

“It is vital for the Tasmanian community to have trust in the state’s child protection systems, and something as sensitive as a protocol for strip searching children can’t be summed up in a few dot points.”

“The Greens share the concern of the Commissioner for Children that these protocols do not go far enough to protect the rights of children.”

“There needs to be a very strong justification to conduct any invasive procedure like a strip search, and the Greens are not convinced that the rights of the child are adequately protected under these fairly sketchy guidelines.”

“The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child states that children should be treated with dignity and not be subject to invasive procedures without a very good justification.”

“At the very least, any children being subjected to a strip search should first be provided with access to legal representation,” Mr O’Halloran said.
Paul O’Halloran MP Greens Police Spokesperson Wednesday, 13 June 2012