For decades, children placed in the care of the States have been neglected and abused in a way which shames our community. And today, they may still be at risk.
Rather than giving the most vulnerable young people the security and safety that each one of us would want for our own children, on countless occasions the people charged with their care ignored their concerns, their allegations of suffering, and the abuse went unchecked. The States was described as an ‘ineffectual and neglectful substitute parent’.
Many, including former Senator Stuart Syvret and survivors he and others represented and championed, will today rightly feel vindicated by the findings. In so many ways, they have been proved correct. But as the panel said: ‘The publication of the report does not bring to an end the likely need to offer support’ for those who still live with the scars of the way they were treated.
Senator Gorst has pledged action and the Inquiry Panel will be back to check on progress and to ensure that their recommendations do not get ignored. The Chief Minister says that he will not rest until everything has been done to make sure children are not still at risk.
That will mean more funding will be made available, the appointment of a Children’s Commissioner, recruitment issues will be addressed, legislation will be updated and improved and the best advice will be sought from wherever it is needed.
The report has also called on this Island to address what many who gave evidence to the panel described as ‘the Jersey way’. One told the panel that it stemmed from a lack of separation between the judiciary and the political system and had among its chief characteristics secrecy, a fear factor about speaking out against the establishment and a lack of trust in the institutions of state which should be there to protect and serve Islanders.
In Senator Gorst’s words, a culture existed in which children were not believed, in which people would rather look the other way because it was easier, in which unpalatable truths were swept under the carpet. He might have added that too many people were so preoccupied defending the reputation of this Island, of using legislative time and muscle to safeguard the interests of the finance industry, that they stopped listening to children in their care.
Frances Oldham QC, who chaired the inquiry, called this culture ‘deplorable’.
There are some immediate steps which must be taken and which are suggested by the inquiry panel. It said that these issues cannot be addressed without further consideration of the recommendations of Sir Cecil Clothier and Lord Carswell, who recommended a separation of powers between the judiciary and the political system. The inquiry report leaves no place for doubt that Jersey needs an independent prosecution service which cannot be accused of political interference and which will give confidence to those seeking justice.
And those criticised in the report must be held accountable. Twice the panel found that Deputy Andrew Lewis lied, once to the States and once to the inquiry itself. The Deputy’s position as a leader of this community must now be untenable and, for the credibility of Jersey and the States, he must stand down.
Ironically, today, that call is not just about what the right thing to do is, it is about the reputation of Jersey, which he and his ministerial colleagues were once accused of prioritising over seeking justice for abuse victims.
But what of the wider culture of indifference which contributed to the plight of these children, and those who spoke out for them, being ignored, a culture which must extend beyond the corridors of power and States departments?
Jersey is justifiably proud of so much about this Island, but this report means that as a community we must accept that there remains a tendency in some quarters to turn backs on uncomfortable truths, to close ranks and to stop listening to complaints.
Why did many victims not feel that they could speak out to those in power or to the media despite many in these groups wanting to listen and to call for action on their behalf?
These are questions which we must all wrestle with in time ahead. Mechanisms must be found to empower whistle-blowers in all parts of Island life so that issues are addressed in an open, accountable and fair way.
The Inquiry panel has delivered a shocking report without fear or favour. We have to thank Frances Oldham and her colleagues for doing their work with such diligence and integrity. And, as she did, we have to thank those who gave such harrowing testimony to ensure that light has been shone into corners of Jersey that were in the dark for far too long.
And in many different ways and for different reasons, as members of a community which failed so many, we have to echo Senator Gorst when he said: ‘I am shocked. I am saddened. I am sorry.’
This must be a watershed moment not just in child protection but in how the Island works together to address issues of inequality and injustice.
