St Helena child abuse scandal
The St Helena child abuse scandal refers to child abuse cases in St Helena. Britain’s Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has been accused of lying to the United Nations over endemic child abuse in St Helena to cover up allegations,[1] including a case of a police officer having raped a four-year-old girl and another police officer having mutilated a two-year-old.[1][2][3][4]
The British government admits it made an “erroneous” report to the United Nations when it denied that child abuse was rife in St Helena.[1]
Sasha Wass QC and her team arrived on St. Helena on 17 March 2015 to commence the Inquiry and departed on 1 April 2015.[5] Announcements were made in local newspapers in week-ending 13 March 2015 and a website has been set up at www.wassinquiry.org.sh.
The Wass Report was published on 10 December 2015. It found that the accusations were grossly exaggerated, and the lurid headlines in the Daily Mail had come from information from two social workers, whom the report described as incompetent. [6][7][8]
See also
References
- 1 2 3 "'Violent and brutal': UK Foreign Office admits cover-up in St Helena child abuse scandal". rt.com. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ↑ "St Helena child abuse: Foreign Office 'was warned British island couldn't cope 12 years ago'". Telegraph. 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ↑ "St Helena child abuse: 'a lot of dark things do happen on this island'". Telegraph. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ↑ "St Helena child abuse: how did abusers get away with it for so long?". Telegraph. Retrieved 19 January 2015.
- ↑ St. Helena Independent, 13 March 2015
- ↑ "HC 662 The Wass Inquiry Report" (PDF). 2015-12-10.
- ↑ "Government inquiry concludes Daily Mail was misled over child abuse and corruption on St Helena". Press Gazette. 10 December 2015.
- ↑ "St Helena child abuse claims dismissed as 'gross distortion of reality'". The Independent. 10 December 2015.