Working Class Action
Background
In Novermber 2002 the notorious paedophile Fr Ivan Payne was released from the Curragh prison after serving 4.5 years on child abuse charges. He was moved into an apartment in the North Inner City of Dublin. The following leaflet was distributed by Working Class Action activists in the North Wall/East Wall area.

Demand Protection for our children

The discovery that a notorious child molester is now living in this area was a shock to all. The convicted paedophile Fr. Ivan Payne moved into Clarion Quay last week. His move into a luxury apartment is fully supported by the Catholic Church, which is believed to be helping out with his 1,600 euro per month rent. This is outrageous.

Payne was found guilty of sexually abusing children and other serious allegations have been made against him. In 1998 he pleaded guilty to 13 charges of sexual abuse against nine boys aged 11 to 14. He abused altar boys and sick children in hospital and was moved around the city by the church as his crimes were uncovered in different parishes.

This support from the church is not surprising. Their attitude recently has proven that their main concern is covering up and sheltering the guilty, not protecting children. However, locating this menace in an apartment block where children live, overlooking a crèche and playground, displays a callous disregard beyond belief.

The Gardai at Store Street also knew of his presence, as Payne is signing on there as part of his parole terms. It is now likely that, since the sordid secret is out, Payne will be moved from this location "for his own safety". Undoubtedly, some other unsuspecting community will be inflicted with his presence. Surely the priority should be protecting the innocent, not sheltering dangerous offenders like this.

The article on below appeared in a Working Class Action (WCA) leaflet issued in October. A case like this only adds urgency to the arguments we made then. People must be warned when a proven danger is present in their community. Informing a community should not be at the discretion of the Gardai, the Church, the judiciary or a health board. It should be a matter of National Policy. This is an approach which is highlighted in WCA’s submission to the National Crime Council recently published consultation paper.

Having seen the potential risk, a community such as this must promote this as a political issue.

Ultimate responsibility lies with the Minister for Justice. Contact him and demand protection for your children and your community.

The Minister can be contacted in the following ways.

Michael McDowell, Minister for Justice,
72-76 St. Stephen's Green, Dublin 2.

Phone: (01) 6028202
Fax: (01) 6615461
E-mail info@justice.ie


Inset in Box
How safe are our kids?

With the recent tragedy of Holly and Jessica in England, and the spate of similar attempted abductions here, many families have been once again asking, how safe are our kids?

Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be an answer. Parents and families are never informed when a paedophile or rapist is released into their community. Nor are they warned about any perceived dangers these menaces may inflict.

While it must be borne in mind that most offences occur within the family and that this situation must be tackled, by the authorities and by other family members, we should none the less be protected from the further dangers of unknown offenders.

And recent cases have not helped. Several relatives of drug addicts in Cabra were concerned about the attention a middle aged man was giving their kids, especially as he admitted giving them money and involving them in petty crime. The lack of response to their concerns by the Gardai led many to suspect that this man’s sleazy advances were tolerated because of his willingness to pass on information about the local crime scene. In another instance in Dublin 7, local residents approached Gardai about their concerns regarding a convicted paedophile renting locally. Amazingly, the Gardai reported back that they had been unaware of his presence and then proceeded to warn locals not to take any action against this man.

The rehabilitation of all offenders while in custody is essential, and upon release a follow up programme may be required. None of this should take away from a community’s right to protect their children from beastly attacks.

Local parents must be informed of any potential danger to their kids.

If we cannot cherish our children, then what sort of society have we become?

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