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Legislators have ‘shied away’ from idea of sex offender registry- Hon Mather
Hon Mather was at the time speaking on an episode of the Umoja show with host Cromwell Smith and Shaina M. Smith-Archer on ZBVI 780 AM on April 22, 2024.
Looking out for youths
Hon Mather, who is also a youth advocate and an educator, said over the years as far back as 2012, there were a lot of conversations about child protection protocols, “How do we look out for all young people, especially not just the girls and the boys, but also young ladies and young boys developing and aging into teenage years,” he said.
“I have heard stories, I've seen the impacts that have happened to children where you know they met with an unfortunate incident and it goes throughout their life,” he said.
The legislator said he ultimately feels that the VI is not doing enough to protect its children from sexual abuse. “There's been a lot of dialogue as to, you know, we're too small to have a sex offenders registry. It's not possible. A lot of my fellow legislators, I would say over the years when I've approached them, they've shied away from it.”
He said for example, people may send their child to a school or youth programme, school or even a church all while unaware of who the "predators may or may not be, at any place surrounding your child."
Sex Offender Registry needed - Hon Mather
“I think we're big enough of a society to have something documented, whether or not it's public or not, that is something that would need to be debated. But when you look at Anguilla, Anguilla has one, a sex offenders registry. It's not public and some members of that society have been screaming and saying it needs to be public,” he said.
Hon Mather added that if someone is repatriated into the territory and they have a record, persons should know as there are members of the community who were repatriated for sex offences and that record should be available even if they leave the country.
“So where the sex offenders registry is concerned, I think it's something that has to happen in the Virgin Islands. It may make a lot of people uncomfortable, their family members in our society or citizens and all society that have family members who are sex offenders, and they may not want this to be done or that to be done.
“But as a youth worker, when I started to realise that I didn't have a ground to stand on by telling a sex offender that you know you shouldn't be by YEP or you shouldn't be by a school after school doing this or doing that… I'm passing that trust that a child has developed in me to someone whom I may not be aware, who may be a predator, and I think it's time in the Virgin Islands that we start to take that very seriously for our young people,” he added.
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19 Responses to “Legislators have ‘shied away’ from idea of sex offender registry- Hon Mather”
The British Virgin Island population is increasing rapidly so a register is needed, because i too have heard about some hush hush cases of predators here in the BVI.
Mather being young will be met with LOTS of opposition— until he starts to push his weight around like the Cuban and brag about ( his friends) he will have his hands fulll with OPPOSITION/LACK of SUPPORT
I see him as a STRONG person with Life’s’ goals that he will accomplish as a politician—MORE POWER TO. BUDDAH