Kali Advocacy Project: Fighting for Social Justice

Campbell's Election Slogan: All of what I've tried to do in Public life is about Children

2009-01-27T20:56:00.004-08:00

The best of intentions
Sean Holman, Public Eye Online. January 26, 2009

Last month, during his year-end interview with The Canadian Press's Dirk Meissner, Premier Gordon Campbell said "all of what I've tried to do in public life is about children." This, in response to questions about his administration's commitment to protecting and improving the lives of the province's most vulnerable children. But his party isn't yet prepared to discuss what it would to meet that commitment if the Liberals win a third term in government. On January 14, the party declined an opportunity to discuss its platform with members of the First Call Coalition, which represents more than 80 organizations concerned with child welfare issues. The reason: the Liberals are "still in the process of formulating their policy platform for the election."

Continue reading "The best of intentions"

Posted by Sean Holman at 11:55 AM. Public Eye Online.
Permanent link | Comments: (1)

(Cough, cough, BS, cough).
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Letter to the Premier from First Call requesting a meeting:

Dear Premier Gordon Campbell,

We are writing to you to regarding opportunities to improve the health and wellbeing of our province's children...

First Call, read the entire letter here.
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Job Posting:

Check Your Head is Hiring!!

Job Opportunity
Education Program Director
with Check Your Head: The Youth Global Education Network

The guiding principle of Check Your Head is to educate, empower and engage youth to act and make choices as active members of their local and global communities.

It's Time for Real Leadership and Action: No More BS for BC's Broken Child Welfare System

2008-12-12T12:15:00.000-08:00

2008 Progress Report on the Implementation of the Recommendations of the BC Children & Youth Review
("Hughes Review"). Representative for Children & Youth.

December 11, 2008
Increased Collaboration, Accountability Essential in Tough Economic Times

The need for intensified government commitment to completing all of the Hughes recommendations is even more essential in challenging economic times, B.C.’s Representative for Children and Youth said today.

VIDEO: Heather Robinson reports: B.C.'s child protection system still broken: watchdog (Runs 1:12) CBC News.

Government still has not completed child-welfare changes, children's representative says
Victoria Times Colonist. Lindsay Kines, December 11, 2008.

Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said today the children’s ministry has yet to complete 15 key recommendations in the damning review by Ted Hughes released more than two years ago.

“It’s concerning to me that the two recommendations that have little or no progress are among the most important in the Hughes Review,” she said in a news release.

Hughes had recommended that government transfer responsibilities to the regions and aboriginal authorities. He also wanted the ministry to do an external review of key programs, including kith-and-kin agreements.

B.C. failing on child protection: Watchdog
The Canadian Press. CTV. Thu Dec. 11 2008. Excerpts:

VICTORIA — B.C.'s children's watchdog accused the provincial government of spending more time working on plans to protect vulnerable children than actually implementing programs to protect them.

Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said Thursday the government is moving too slowly when it comes to fulfilling its promise to implement 62 recommendations from an April 2006 report that called for stability in British Columbia's child welfare system.

"We have significant challenges in British Columbia," she said. "When I engage with the ministry (of Children and Family Development), with the government, and say, `could you please tell me where you think you're going with this for the longer term?' I'm not hearing very much back."

Turpel-Lafond said she cannot understand why the government has not made significant progress on the Hughes report.

She said the government has made little progress in transferring child welfare responsibilities to regions and aboriginal authorities, and it has not developed a system of external evaluation of child service programs.

[MCFD Minister] Christensen said he disagreed with Turpel-Lafond's assessment that the children's ministry is spending more time making plans than implementing programs.

"As I talk to some of the recipients of our services around the province, what they are telling me is they are encouraged by the direction they see the ministry going," he said. "At the end of the day that's what's important, that we demonstrate that outcomes for children are improving."

Christensen: "I am confident this ministry is on the right path."
Watchdog takes another bite
Sean Holman, Public Eye Online. December 11, 2008. Excerpts:

[Christensen:]"I am confident this ministry is on the right path..."

"In respect to the process of establishing regional authorities - that is not a road the ministry is moving down at this point," said Minister Christensen.

And what about Ms. Turpel-Lafond's complaint that her office isn't "consulted regularly when major shifts in policy or changes" are contemplated or conducted? "The representative is an independent officer of the legislature," Minister Christensen responded. "Government is still going to develop policy. Government is still going to set the direction that any ministry of government goes. And certainly we welcome the representative's input and reflection on that."

"But, at the end of the day, government is still going to be making decisions about how it is this ministry should work, how it is other ministries should work, where additional investments should be made, how it is we want to be interacting with First Nations. And I don't think that should surprise anyone. I can't think of another independent officer that is in a position to sort of direct how government should operate."
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From the trenches:

Representative warns children may pay the price of new Liberal cuts
BC Government & Service Employees Union.

"Front line workers see first hand the impact these cuts had on families and children," said Walker.

"I am particularly concerned over reports that the Ministry of Children and Family Development will be looking at "fiscal restraint measures" in the coming weeks," said Walker. "Has the government learned nothing?"

Walker was referring to a memorandum sent by the MCFD Deputy Minister to all employees warning about the steps government might take to cut staff in order to meet new budget reductions.

"I recently had an opportunity to discuss these issues with the Deputy Minister and I look forward to continuing that discussion in the new year," said Walker. "We must all work together to ensure our children are protected."

The BCGEU represents 4,200 employees who work in the Ministry of Children and Family Development and over 10,000 who work in front-line community social service agencies.

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Children’s Ministry requires progressive, clear and decisive leadership in a time of economic uncertainty
BC Association of Social Workers

It is time for some sober second thoughts on the state of BC’s child protection system as we head into an unparalleled economic crisis.

BC is in desperate need of strong, clear and decisive leadership. There is arguably nothing more important than keeping BC’s children safe and it is the paramount legal mandate and moral imperative of the BC government to do so.
The MCFD Deputy Minister’s recent statement that one option for MCFD to address the need for fiscal restraint measures would be not to replace child protection workers who leave by “natural attrition” through retirement or other means, causes us deep concern. This is not the way to strengthen the child welfare system.

BCASW offers these recommendations for the BC government, MCFD and other stakeholders to shore up the child welfare system and to be proactive in planning for the days ahead:

Read more here.
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Federation urges less talk, more action on Hughes Report
BC Federation of Child & Family Service Agencies

The pace of meaningful change for B.C.’s most vulnerable children must speed up significantly to bring the important recommendations of the 2006 Hughes report to life, says the province’s largest coalition of child, youth and family services.

Federation board president Nanette Taylor welcomed Turpel-Lafond’s report this week urging immediate action on all aspects of the B.C. Child and Youth Review (dubbed the Hughes report after its author, retired Justice Ted Hughes). “We echo the concerns of the Representative about whether the Ministry’s current plan has the necessary focus and funding behind it to achieve the changes we all desire, particularly in times of budgetary restraint,” said Taylor.

Charlesworth notes five key concerns in Turpel-Lafond’s report that the Federation shares:

- The need for external evaluation to ensure all services and strategies are effective;
- Lack of oversight and performance measures for increasingly autonomous regions;
- Lack of progress on the aboriginal agenda;
- A lag time of three to five years before a new information system is in place that will improve services and decision-making at all levels;
- The province’s decision to eliminate the position of Provincial Director of Child Welfare, which could impact quality and consistency of services to children.
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Aboriginal children's lives may be getting worse, says child advocate
The Province. Wednesday, November 26, 2008.

Turpel-Lafond ruffles feathers but wins funding
Vancouver Sun. Wednesday, December 03, 2008.

Province too slow on child protection, watchdog says
The Canadian Press. Globe & Mail. December 12, 2008.

The B.C. government is being accused of not moving fast enough on recommendations made almost three years ago on the province's child protection system. A report by Children's Representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said yesterday that the province needs to speed up its work on the recommendations of former judge Ted Hughes. She examined 15 of Mr. Hughes's 62 recommendations, and found none are complete.

B.C.'s child protection system still broken: children's watchdog
CBC News. Canadian Press. Thursday, December 11, 2008.

Comments from BC citizens.

toobusy wrote:Posted 2008/12/11 at 5:45 AM ET

As a child protection worker, I have seen years and years of changes in policy, funding, "new directions" and none of it is suffient. There are high caseloads and Social Workers end of putting out fires rathe than being able to effectively deal with the root cause of the problems.

CaribooRose wrote:Posted 2008/12/12 at 12:45 AM ET

I have noticed a remarkable rise of foster children being adopted out to their grandparents ... sure, that's all well and good but there's a growing group of over-65 grandparent/parents.

Why aren't the children fostered on a Continuing Child in Care Order, to younger foster parents who must ensure the children visit relatives regularly??

A diminishing budget is my opinion.

Fellow Canadian wrote:Posted 2008/12/11 at 10:03 AM ET

To watch the Minister go on about how things are improving shows us that he simply tries to ignore the Child Commissioner. People believe the judge more than they do the Minsiter as the deputy keeps shipping out long memos with her latesrt restructure plans. Te Premier tells great stories abut agreeing with the Hughes report and then does little to implement the recommendations, and kids keep dying .

The Hammer Strikes!! wrote:Posted 2008/12/11 at 5:12 AM ET

Gee it took them how long to figure out what most of us in the field have already been stating for years? Our own personal experience at dealing with this problem with this ministry has now gone on for 10 odd years. Having been bounced from one case worker to another, each having their own philosophy as to how to deal with a given situation where children are put at daily risk in a home filled with drugs, alcohol and physical abuse. The ministry's approach is we have to catch them in the act. So they set up regularly scheduled visitations, where the "parents" put on an academy award performance and clean up just before the appointed workders arrive. Having complained to the workers and following up the chain of command and finally with local MLA, we are back where we started from. The amount of pain and frustration that we, as concerned relatives, have cannot be understated.

A system that is flawed and broken, absolutely. It is no wonder that parents and relatives bypass the laws that are put in place but not enforced and take matters into their own hands. Damn this ministry!!

JoePublic wrote:Posted 2008/12/11at 5:53 AM ET

Over the past decade, it has become obvious that the Gordon Campbell government has no desire nor intention to take care of the vulnerable children of this province.

It is time for a change of government.

p.j.floyd wrote:Posted 2008/12/11 at 6:33 AM ET

Child and Family services in this province have been a dysfunctional mess for at least 40 years. I know that from my own personal experiences. I didn't lose my kids to the system, I raised 3 kids whose biological mother lost them. I was appalled by what I learned. I spent the next 33 years working to improve the system, with limited success.

The government doesn't care because the voters of b.c. don't care. Children and families need affordable housing, affordable day care, access to training, a minimum wage a family can live on, and a community that cares enough to put the needs of families ahead of NHL games and rock concerts and the Olympics.

If you think - as I do - that billions on frills while children are cold and hungry is simply obscene, phone the Premier's office and tell him so. It's free - use the Access B.C. 1-800 number in the Blue pages and tell them to patch you through. I took all my Christmas money this year and gave it to our local food bank, for the same reason. Merry Christmas.
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Contact your MLA, by phone, e-mail, or drop in to their local office and tell them you want action and you want it now for BC's children.

On May 12th 2009, remember to get out and vote for candidates in your ridings who will work hard to support BC's children, vulnerable people and families.

Staffing at MCFD Already Cut to the Bone

2008-12-04T20:34:00.003-08:00

Fiscal restraint measures at kids ministry

Children and family development top bureaucrat Lesley du Toit has told staff her ministry will be looking at "fiscal restraint measures" in the coming weeks.

According to an email distributed on Wednesday, that means it may be "necessary to revisit" timeframes for some ministry initiatives. Although there will be no "across-the-board hiring freeze." We will manage some of this budget pressure through the natural attrition that will occur as people retire or leave their positions.

For example, I require you to consider ways to do your work that create efficiency with regard to travel, meetings and conferences. You will hear more details of these measures through your Leadership.

Continue reading "Fiscal restraint measures at kids ministry"

Posted by Sean Holman. Public Eye Online. December 04, 2008.
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There is NOTHING "natural" about MCFD's attrition rate.

That's sick!
Sean Holman. Public Eye Online.

Children and family development employees took $7.3 million of sick leave in fiscal 2007/08 - costing the government more money than any other provincial ministry. This, according to documents exclusively obtained by Public Eye via a freedom of information request.

That money equals 47,313 sick days or an average of 12.39 days per employee - significantly more than the 8.55 day average across government. In fact, only the smaller ministry of employment and income assistance was sicker, averaging 12.89 days per employee at a cost of $3.2 million.

Nevertheless, the average number of sick days at children and family development has -for the most part - increased since the Liberals took office, starting at 10.97 days per employee in 2001/02 and reaching its highest level in the past fiscal year. By comparison, that average has decreased across government over the same period, starting at 9.45 days. So what action is the ministry taking to ensure its employees are healthier?

But British Columbia Government and Service Employees' Union research, campaigns and communications director Mary Rowles said the Campbell administration should be doing more. "Everything the ministry spokesperson mentioned was all about attendance management - sending nurses to badger people who are at home. Where are the actions that will actually reduce caseloads, for example, with child protection workers, reduce stress and actually address the root causes of this?"

The following is a complete listing of the average sick days per employee at children and family development and across government by fiscal year.

Average sick days per person at children and family development

Fiscal 2007/08 - 12.39
Fiscal 2006/07 - 11.46
Fiscal 2005/06 - 11.71
Fiscal 2004/05 - 11.71
Fiscal 2003/04 - 11.52
Fiscal 2002/03 - 11.77
Fiscal 2001/02 - 10.97

Average sick days per person across government

Fiscal 2007/08 - 8.55
Fiscal 2006/07 - 8.37
Fiscal 2005/06 - 8.69
Fiscal 2004/05 - 8.31
Fiscal 2003/04 - 8.67
Fiscal 2002/03 - 8.88
Fiscal 2001/02 - 9.45

Read more.
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Government must put funds into child protection services
BCGEU. May 7 '08

A growing cascade of independent reports on child protection show BC's
government is failing vulnerable children, says BCGEU President George Heyman.

Heyman adds, "Services are fractured and disconnected for families on and off-reserve. Communication within the ministries responsible must be improved. And considering the continuing high attrition rate of social workers, the Ministry of Children and Families is still not putting enough social workers needed on the frontlines."

Heyman notes that despite the BC Representative for Children and Youth's recent recommendation that BC government consult with stakeholders such as the BCGEU - it has yet to respond to our union's frequently-made offer to work together to address systemic problems in child protection.

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The BC Government Must Demonstrate Leadership and Commitment To Resolve Crisis In Recruiting And Retaining Child Protection Social Workers
BC Association of Social Workers. September 22, 2008

The BC Association of Social Workers is delighted to learn that the BC government has decided to increase the salaries of correctional officers and sheriffs in British Columbia by 9.2 per cent as a market adjustment, in recognition of their challenging workload demands, high attrition rates and the difficulty recruiting and retaining them. It is now time for the Minister of Children and Family Development Tom Christensen to demonstrate this kind of forward thinking and enlightened leadership in recognition of the serious workload demands, short staffing and the astronomical attrition rate of child protection social workers that is equal to, or surpasses, the annual loss of 12 per cent of correctional officers and sheriffs in BC.

Read more.

Representative Getting Grilled for Doing Her Job for BC's Kids

2008-12-04T18:29:00.004-08:00

It looks like the Representative of Children & Youth is getting a taste of the kind of medicine quite a lot of people in the province get for telling the Liberals the truth about what they've done to citizens, in this case, our most vulnerable children & youth.

Think about it, one of the the BC Liberal appointees to the Child & Youth Legislative committee is grilling the Representative for needing to lease more office space because more staff are needed to do the work of reviewing, reporting and monitoring the abysmal job the government is doing on behalf of a growing and vulnerable generation of BC's children who have been sacrificed to stage the Olympics and so billions could be shovelled into real estate deals, construction projects and a million other things than investing in our children's futures.

Did you hear about this? While one in five children in BC live in poverty, leading Canada's child poverty rate for five years in a row, don't have food, or homes, or services Gordon Campbell was handing out gold medals that were engraved with "Presented by Premier Gordon Campbell" to Canada Line construction workers.

"The government couldn't say how many of the medals were given away or how much they cost... Yes, gold medals. Well, gold-coloured, anyway. And not just cheap little plastic knock-offs like the one my six-year-old got in a fun run a few months ago. "It's a good three inches across and weighs more than a quarter-pounder -- almost like a real Olympic medal. What a waste of money!"[Mike Farnworth - NDP house leader].

Premier's gold medals make NDP see red
Only name on construction workers' 'decoration' is Campbell's
Michael Smyth, The Province. Published: Friday, November 21, 2008.
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81 children in B.C. killed themselves in last 4 years: report
CBC News, Canada. Tuesday, December 02, 2008.

Panel makes recommendation on child suicide prevention

BURNABY - A report on the lives and deaths of 81 British Columbian children who died by suicide — which includes the first published recommendations from a death-review panel appointed under the Coroners Act — was issued today through the BC Coroners Service.

The report from the Child Death Review Unit, entitled Looking for Something to Look Forward To, concerns 81 children who died by suicide between Jan. 1, 2003 and Dec. 31, 2007.

“Seventy per cent of these children had shown signs of suicidal behaviour and most had reached out to someone for help before their deaths,” said Kellie Kilpatrick, director of the Child Death Review Unit, in a press release.

Three main risk profiles:
-children and youth with chronic mental health problems (45 per cent)
- those who experienced ongoing family or relationship dysfunction (44 per cent)
- those who experienced a stressful event in the absence of chronic mental health problems and dysfunction (26 per cent).
-School challenges
- history of substance use were also identified risk factors.

What about being in, or or from foster care? What were the numbers on that?

Looking for Something to Look Foward To – A Five-Year Retrospective
Review of Child and Youth Suicide in B.C. – (Jan. 1, 2003 to Dec. 31, 2007)

Summary of the Five-Year Restrospective Review

The report is available online at www.pssg.gov.bc.ca/coroners/child-death-review/index.htm

BC Coroners Service - Child Death Review Unit

2007 Annual Report - Child Death Review Unit

The report looks at common risk factors among 395 deaths involving children and youth ages one day to 18-years-old that occurred between 1999 and 2007, and issues recommendations that aim to prevent future child deaths. The review determined 126 deaths were preventable.

The "955 Transition Files" of the former Children's Commission – November 2006

Child and Youth Deaths in B.C. – Statistics, 1997 to 2004

How about 2004 to 2008?

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Resources

Youth in BC website - Information on suicide and mental health issues.

B.C. Crisis Centres Distress line: Help is available 24/7
Greater Vancouver: 604 872-3311

Toll Free (Howe Sound and Sunshine Coast): 1-866-661-3311

Toll Free (B.C.-wide): 1-800-SUICIDE (784-2433)

TTY: 1-866-872-0113

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B.C. watchdog wants improved services for special needs children
CBC News. Thursday, November 27, 2008.

No improvements in care since deaths of 4 B.C. children: report
CBC News.

B.C. children's watchdog defends spending on new office space
Last Updated: Thursday, December 4, 2008 10:45 AM ET
The Canadian Press. CBC News.

B.C.'s outspoken representative for children and youth exchanged sharp words with the chairman of an all-party legislative committee that approves the annual budget for her office.

Children's watchdog defends leased office space
DIRK MEISSNER. Globe & Mail. From Print Edition, 04/12/08.

Excerpts:

British Columbia's children's watchdog exchanged sharp words yesterday with the chairman of an all-party legislative committee that approves the annual budget for her office.Last year, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond battled with the same committee over her budget before eventually getting approval for a 36-per-cent increase.

Ms. Turpel-Lafond shot back, saying that Mr. Hawes appeared to want to micromanage her office. She also said it appeared Mr. Hawes was alleging some form of malfeasance on her part.
"We're not trying to micromanage," Mr. Hawes said.

Ms. Turpel-Lafond said it was never a clear policy that she should have to appear before the committee to discuss leasing office space.

Legislature of BC:
Select Standing Committee on Children and Youth
Reports of Proceedings (Minutes and Hansard)

Report of the Gove Inquiry into Child Protection in British Columbia

United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC)

Investigation into MCFD Handling of Child Protection Placements Decisions is Long Overdue

2008-12-01T19:37:00.005-08:00

There are no other words to describe the latest mess in MCFD
than these - morally adrift, unconscionable, depraved, indefensible...

Here is the story as it is unfolding, you will hear little about this
from the corporate media:

A 10 week old baby girl has received injuries medically consistent with
shaken baby syndrome while living in a foster home in Saanich. She was
legally removed from her parents at birth and is reported to have been in
this home since she was born. A child apprehension at that tender age
indicates significant issues and challenges on the part of the parent(s).

On Wednesday, November 26th, the foster home called 911, to report
the baby was in distress and having trouble breathing. She was taken
to hospital.

The Ministry of Children and Family Development allegedly told police
medical tests showed the infant girl had a brain injury from an assault.
She is now in hospital and last reported to be in critical but stable condition
at Victoria General Hospital with a life-threatening injury, thought to be
shaken baby syndrome. A police investigation is underway.
Central Saanich Det. Paul Brailey said:

"Social services have got a lot of answers to some of the questions
we'll be asking them and we'll be gathering information," said Brailey.

There were also reported to be three other foster children in the home.
They were removed from the foster home and this is where things get
even more dicey.

According to ChekTV, one of the other children in the foster home was a 5
month old infant, who had also been removed from his parents and placed in
the home. According to the news report, MCFD called the parents, Michelle
and Dave Williams and told them there had been an emergency at the foster
home and requested they take the child back to live with them.

The parents allege that the Ministry told them to take their son to be seen
at a clinic, or hospital for a medical exam to check if he has any injuries.
The parents report their worry that something happened to him as well and
note he hasn't been the same since they got him back from the Ministry.

Top Story: Shaken Baby News video on CHEKTV.

If what the parents say is true, this constitutes one of the biggest cases of
negligence and liability that the province has ever undertaken, on par
with the death of Matthew Vaudreuil, five years old.
Read the missing chapter, in the print version, What the Ministry Did
After Matthew Died for some real insight into decision-making control in
child protection, to see how little things have changed and how these things
really work in BC, decade after decade.

Let's do the math here, the infant is in foster care, the BC government's
Ministry of Children & Family Development is his legal guardian. They return
the child to his parents, who were considered unable to care for him, at least
until the emergency occurred with the other child. MCFD apparently calls the
parents up, telling them they need to place their son elsewhere. So, what
happens: according to the parents, MCFD sent the baby boy home to his
parents, who reportedly told them to get him checked out at the hospital,
or clinic for any injuries. Here he is, he's all yours.

Can you just imagine what might have happened to these
parents if they took their child to the hospital and injuries were
found? Who do you think would be blamed? MCFD? The foster parents?
If you believe that, I've got some lovely swamp for sale in Florida for you.
It would be the parents, of course. Kind of begs the question,
are there more of these kinds of situations?

At this point, there must be a parallel investigation conducted into
the entire MCFD decision-making process and who the parties involved were
who called the shots in this whole situation. This includes the Executive
Leadership team. Enough is enough.

The results of this investigation must be reported publically, nothing less
will do in the interest of the children and parents involved. It is in the public
interest to ensure that someone outside of MCFD conducts the investigation.
They are incapable of effectively investigating themselves, in the same way
that the police are not credible, nor able to be counted on to do so in a fair
and unbiased, or self-interested way.

It is time for a comprehensive review of the decision-making process
regarding child protection placements of children. Social workers are the first
to get the blame, have a gag order on them and are often the last ones
calling the shots, but have to live with the results and consequences.
No more, its time for the truth to come out.

Foster parents under investigation in possible 'shaken baby' case

Police probe alleged shaking of infant
Brain injury in 10-week-old foster baby likely an assault,
investigators say
By Louise Dickson. Victoria Times Colonist.

Abashed minister admits error in censoring report
Privacy watchdog 'perplexed' by omissions in report on childhood sex abuse treatments. Lindsay Kines Times Colonist. November 05, 2008.

The B.C. Children's Ministry was wrong to censor a critical report on its sexual abuse treatment program before releasing it to the Time Colonist last year, an independent watchdog has found.

Even if it had been allowed, Loukidelis said the ministry didn't use the exception properly. He called it "perplexing" that the ministry chose to blank out negative comments, while leaving positive and neutral comments untouched.
"The result would leave a reader with the impression that the report was more positive than it actually was when read in full..."

The Times Colonist filed a complaint with Loukidelis last year after getting a censored version of the report from government, and obtaining an uncensored copy from a source. A comparison of the two documents showed that government had blanked out comments that agencies working with sexually abused children "were unanimous in their view that the program funding is insufficient," or that there was a "pervasive view among providers that the program has been neglected by government decision-makers over the past several years."

FOI cover up, or isolated mistake - your call Paul Willcocks: Paying Attention. Tuesday, November 11, 2008.

Office of the Information & Privacy Commissioner - David Loukidelis Investigation Report F08-03: Ministry of Children & Family Development. November 4, 2008.

Loukidelis stated the Ministry believed they made an "understandable mistake," he further noted that "none of the evidence clearly establishes that the Ministry's head [in this case Deputy Minister Lesley Du Toit] considered the exercise of discretion in deciding to rely on s.13(1)to withhold information , as opposed to waiving that section and releasing the information, and if the head did exercise discretion, on what basis."

An opaque kind of transparency Sean Holman. Public Eye Online. May 02, 2007.

Writes Ms. du Toit, "to the extent that it is possible within law, MCFD and all service providers will be fully transparent with regard to plans, funding and achievement of principles and goals."
But a freedom of information request for the memo blanked-out any mention of her meeting with Premier Gordon Campbell, her intention to downsize the ministry's headquarters staff and instructions that managers must be at least 90 percent supportive of her restructuring plans.

Ten percent dissent okay with du Toit! Sean Holman. Public Eye Online.

In an email, sent to executive team members on January 28, deputy minister Lesley du Toit writes "if any of your managers…are not 90% of the way there and able to be genuinely positive and facilitating of change, then be very sure that you do not appoint them in this new structure."

I have held discussions with both the Premier and Minister on this matter and will have one more discussion with the minister before the 6th. At our meeting on the 6th will spend most of our time on discussing the regionalization of MCFD's services, decision-making, and community engagement. This will include how we intend to proceed with self governance in relation to Aboriginal services.

MCFD provincial office will logically over the next 4 years be downsized as we move to full regionalization. Therefore, please keep your teams lean and mean so that we do not end up having to move endless people later or find them new positions.

The Prairie Invasion Sean Holman. Public Eye Online.

Deputy minister Lesley Du Toit announces Marilyn Hedlund (pg. 5):

I am very pleased to announce the appointment of Marilyn Hedlund as Provincial Director of Child Welfare. Marilyn will serve as the statutory officer designated by the Minister, under the Child, Family and Community Service Act and Adoption Act.

Next thing we know, Marilyn Hedlund is no longer the Provincal Director, now she is the Assistant Deputy Minister for Early Education.

Must have missed a step in there, when did she stop being Director? Who is the current one? Was the current one involved in the decisions made in the cases mentioned above?

Approved and Ordered March 6, 2008
ORDER IN COUNCIL 130 Statutory Authority: Public Service, s. 12 Marilyn Hedlund is appointed Assistant Deputy Minister, Ministry of Children and Family Development.

Contact the Ministry of Children & Family Development

LESLEY DU TOIT PO BOX 9721 STN PROV GOVT VICTORIA BC V8W 9S2
E-mail: MCF.DeputyMinistersOffice@gov.bc.ca

Minister Tom Christensen E-mail: tom.christensen.mla@leg.bc.ca PO Box 9057, Stn Prov Govt Victoria, BC V8W 9E2 Phone: 250 387-9699Fax: 250 387-9722

If you have a story you want to tell, contact:

Nicholas Simons, MCFD Opposition Critic

E-mail: nicholas.simons.mla@leg.bc.ca

Tel: 250 387-3655; Fax: 250 387-4680

Toll free: 1 866 373-0792

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Shaken baby syndrome - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Abusive Head Trauma (Shaken Baby Syndrome)

The National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome
Here is some real help for children & families:

Aboriginal child protection fact sheet series from Legal Services Society:

Understanding Aboriginal Community & Parents’ Rights

Understanding Court Orders and Hearings

Understanding Kith and Kin Agreements

Also: Family Law in BC website.

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The cost of child abuse
CBC.
Foster children being housed in hotels, daycare: NDP
CBC Saskatchewan.
B.C. dad accused of killing 3 kids agitated at hearing
Robert Koopmans. Vancouver Sun. December 1, 2008

Community Living BC: Broke & Languishing

2008-05-13T10:30:00.004-07:00

As we’ve written about many times before, services to individuals with developmental disabilities and their families are in severe crisis in BC, through the actions of the BC Liberal government. It is a travesty, gross negligence and a human rights violation of epic proportion, which brings shame to the BC government. Remember, they are the ones who wrote this:

Goal #3 - Build the best system of support in Canada for persons with disabilities, those with special needs, children at risk and seniors.

A recap. One of the brain trust involved in devolving Community Living services (part of MCFD) was Doug Walls, Gordon Campbell’s relative by marriage. Mr. Walls and his Liberal appointed Steering Committee created the blueprints for the Crown agency Community Living BC. Mr. Walls was awarded taxpayer money, which, by the way, has never been located, nor is it clear whether he provided the government any of the services he received the contract for. The audit by PriceWaterhouse Cooper has of course disappeared from the government website, but they of course they didn't find anything of a criminal nature, just that he had some "influence" on government officials. Hey, interesting, they're the same auditors for the ICBC scandal and a whole lot of others ones we've never even heard about.

At the time MCFD gave him the contract it was known to government officials he was being investigated by the RCMP in Prince George (since 1998) for fraud over $5000 against the CIBC. Gordon Hogg, then Minister of Children & Families resigned over this & Chris Haynes, Deputy Minister was fired, but I'm sure he received a sweet parting package. Walls was also quite close with Shirley Bond and was the former BC Liberal riding association president in Prince George. He pled guilty to fraud and was given a conditional discharge, isn't that meaningful? Has anyone checked to see whether he's gotten any new MCFD, or CLBC contracts since he was caught out? That might be an interesting Freedom of Information & Privacy request. Geeze, at one time all he had to do was write his own cheques and submit them to his buddies in the BC government and life was all good.

No jail for former B.C. official over bank fraud
Last Updated: Friday, March 9, 2007 11:57 AM ET
CBC News
A former senior provincial government adviser with close ties to the B.C. Liberals has been handed a conditional sentence after pleading guilty to bank fraud.

He admitted he defrauded the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce of more than $5,000 in a scheme that included writing bad cheques.

Premier Gordon Campbell's Liberal government later hired Walls to revamp B.C.'s interim Community Living Authority.

***
Another Special Prosecutor means More Questions for Campbell
David Schreck. Strategic Thoughts. January 17, 2004 .

Late on Friday afternoon, the time for "taking out the garbage", the Campbell government announced the appointment of another special prosecutor. This time the investigation involves Doug Walls, the Premier's relative by marriage, a former President of a provincial Liberal constituency association, and the acting CEO of the Interim Authority for Community Living.

Read more about the BC Supreme Court ruling against Walls, his relatives, his co-accused and all of the little companies they set up.

***
BTW, Rick Mowles, CEO of CLBC also wears the hat of chief bargaining agent for Community Social Services Employers’ Association (CSSEA). He was appointed by CEO, wait for it…by the BC Liberals to help devolve CLBC. Some of us might be forgiven for thinking he might have been in just a teensy little CONFLICT OF INTEREST when he was involved in negotiating infrastructure and operational funding for the new agency AND being an Employer representative. Doesn’t seem to have bothered Mowles, or the Liberals much, which kind of speaks volumes.

The parent in this media story hits the nail on the head about the ass backwards way child welfare is administered in BC (and other provinces). Instead of being proactive, providing adequate respite, in-home support and an adequate living wage to parents on income assistance (not this family) MCFD & CLBC pay foster parents thousands of dollars a month (which they deserve) but deny parents adequate financial, or caregiver support until the caregivers burn out and have no choice but to put their children in very, very expensive foster, or institutional care. It’s fiscal incompetence and systemic negligence and frankly stupidity which keeps the child welfare system in a crisis-driven state. Any business person reading this, or anyone with common sense would recognize that this is the kind of financial management that leads to businesses going under rapidly. CLBC's budgets are often shot at the beginning of their new fiscal year and we understand they may be cutting even more corners to keep afloat. If this was a business, it would have been bankrupt within a year of operating.

CLBC has been asked to keep waitlists since they began operating, July 2006 and here we are in 2008 and they are still unwilling to do so at all for some services and spotty ones at best for others. It is an unmitigated public services disaster and a gross failure of the governments' fiduciary duty to our most vulnerable citizens. This isn't even getting into the many, many systemic problems facing the agencies who recieve buckets of

Community Living discussion paper

The BCGEU, the union that “represents” CLBC workers held a forum and released a discussion paper, on the state of Community Living services in BC which was written with a great deal of stakeholder input.

Apr 7 '08
"Despite a strong mandate and shared vision, the system is failing."
That's one of the findings in a discussion paper on the state of community living services in the province of British Columbia that was produced by the BCGEU.

The paper, "Exploring Solutions," was prepared as a result of interviews and two separate dialogues bringing together workers, employers, advocacy groups, and family members to discuss their experience of community living services in B.C.

A key part of the paper was an analysis of the current situation involving people with developmental disabilities:

"The provincial authority (Community Living BC) provides support and services to only 28% of the 36,000 adults British Columbians with developmental disabilities. There are more than 1,300 eligible individuals on waitlists."

***
Community Living Forum - May 4, 2007
Representatives from unions in the community social services sector, family groups and employers attended this forum to look at issues around Community Living BC.
Click here for webcast.
***
B.C. cuts respite for family of severely disabled child:
Parents say Campbell government biased against families who look after their own
Last Updated: Tuesday, May 13, 2008 10:01 AM ET
By Kathy Tomlinson CBC News

The parents of a severely disabled B.C. girl are accusing the provincial government of neglecting the needs of disabled children and their families....

There is no way to tell how many parents are waiting for government help, because Community Living B.C. doesn't compile its waiting lists provincially. "We don't have any of that information," said Mowles. "The waiting lists would be kept in a local office — or local contractors would keep that — so we don't track that information."

****
Interestingly, David Schreck was calling on the Auditor General to review CLBC back in 2004. It doesn't look like that has ever happened and they are even in worse fiscal conditions these days. I hope stakeholders consider making a formal complaint and request for investigation into the fiscal and operational management of this Crown agency. I'm quite sure there are some interesting things to find that would be in the public's interest to have brought out into the open.

Liability Issues for MCFD: Placements with Relatives & Others

2008-05-05T07:35:00.003-07:00

I suppose the public would be shocked to know that these kind of placements of children take place all the time. In 2004, when this child was initially placed with the grandmother, according to the media story, MCFD was doing virtually anything they could to prevent children from coming into care. There were way too many children "on the books" (over 10,000) and they needed to reduce the numbers in care and of course meet budget cuts set by the BC Liberals.
Out of Care Placements, Kith & Kin agreements, placement of children under Child in Home of Relative (CIHR) through the Ministry of Employment & Income Assistance became the goals of placement. And why not, MCFD doesn't have to pay a dime of the measly funds portioned out to relatives. Due diligence is often not really a factor, nor are issues of liability considered much at all. I don't think they are even really understood from an organizational risk assessment perspective. Lets face it, the BC government has "gotten away" with providing substandard child protection for decades, not just in the last 7 years, where it has been markedly worse and strategically defunded, deskilled and torn apart in the name of "alternative service delivery."

I agree that strong efforts should go into placing all children, not just Aboriginal, with relatives or others who the child knows, rather than foster care. However, there came a certain point where clinical judgment no longer mattered. Or, which sadly may have been another issue is that capacity within the system was so "dumbed down" that MCFD was unable to even recognize high-risk when it was staring them right in the eye. There is a lack of general experience in child protection throughout the organization now. I don't know too many industries, or fields where workers-in-training, or within their first year of employment are training brand new workers, or even students. Or, have been promoted to supervisory positions after two years. Or, managers who have never actually worked as frontline workers in child protection, or have any familiarity with the complexities of child protection (law, practice standards, policies, procedures, risk assessment, pesky little details like those). "Management" is often treated as a generic skillset, but a missing subtext to many of these tragic cases, is that management in child protection is not generic. The knowledge required is specific, crucial and can be a matter of life and death, or great harm that might be experienced by a child who has no-one else to watch out for their safety, or to protect them. In MCFD, once you've decided to play the "career track" game, more often than not, you will be willing to turn a blind eye and do what you're told, bring the numbers down etc. etc. It's a piece of the puzzle of the dysfunctional culture in MCFD that those outside rarely understand and it all leads to a general de-skilling of the entire workforce & culture.

It may be the case MCFD did not know the kind of harm that would come to this child, but I suspect this grandmother probably had her own child welfare file from her own years as a parent.
It's not common to do risk assessments, or dig very deep when there is anyone else around who might take the child off the system's hands. And I'm sure this grandmother really does love the child and wanted the best for her. The childhood trauma of many grandparents, especially those who were impacted by residential schools, is re-triggered when they are put into parenting situations beyond their capacity to deal with and provided little support, or resources.

For one home visit, a couple of references, a criminal record check & a check of the MCFD database, any individual can have a child placed in their home. For CIHR, none of that happens.
The parent/legal guardian (who has been deemed to have sufficiently poor judgement to retain care themselves) signs a paper, hands it to welfare & bam, that child is now in that relative's home, forever sometimes. See the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren legal research project for more details and to fill in their online survey.

This story, and so many others that have tragically come to light, is also about the responsibility and liability of MCFD in placing a child with a number of special needs with a family member who may not have what it takes to parent the child. One of the most difficult lessons of working in child protection is that just because a family member (parent, grandparent etc.) loves a child, does not mean they have the capacity, skills & knowledge to adequately (& in this case) to safely parent a child and provide them what they need for their health & wellbeing.

MCFD knew they were setting up some high-risk placements for children when they brought these alternative placements in. There were enough people at MCFD HQ who had the years of experience to know what was going to happen. It's no mistake the regions and MCFD in general did not and probably still don't keep statistics on child apprehensions from out of care, kith & kin & CIHR placements. Most family members offer the children a home out of love, but then find themselves with little financial, emotional, or parenting support, increased costs (food, medical, dental, clothing etc.) and a child who taxes every parenting bone in their body.
In the worst types of these placements, relatives, or others, are simply doing it for the money. It happens more than MCFD will admit. And the joke is on them, as they discover it's harder work than they thought and then they resent the child and if they can, get MCFD to take the child out so they don't have to deal with it anymore. More so, MCFD either outright refuses to provide funding for the children, or in some cases, they renege on that initial commitment and give families the run around.

Another issue in this situation is that I find it very, very difficult to believe that with this level of abuse occurring that other relatives, neighbours, friends and community members did not have some idea of what was happening for some time. Kudos to the anonymous reporter who finally did report, but everyone else who knew & kept silent should be very ashamed of themselves for allowing this to continue for so long, had they intervened earlier, this child would not have experienced this profound abuse, which will have additional lifelong impacts on her. It's not enough for anyone to turn a blind eye anymore. All of us are responsible, in every community,
for keeping children safe.

In some ways, MCFD is always in a Catch-22. They try to place with relatives, sometimes are even pressured and threatened into do so (think of the optics of a loving grannie threatening to "go to the media" if a child isn't placed with her). It happens and MCFD has so much bad press and can't speak to specific cases, so the threat and risk management is in overdrive when faced with these situations. So, sometimes in spite of the reservations, or even in the face of outright opposition, MCFD caves and places children with unsuitable, or inappropriate caregivers. It is often only a matter of time before the results are seen in those situations, sometimes so tragically.

I think it is important to understand that many times workers in the systems advise supervisors and managers they don't believe placement with particular relatives is a good idea and provide the reasons why, based on their clinical judgment. But, in the politicized child protection culture, workers are often pressured to place children in unsafe situations. It happens all the time in the interests of keeping kids out of care. Got to keep those numbers down. If this sounds callous & cynical, it is, because keeping the dollars down is the name of the "game" in the money pit that is MCFD. They don't cut corners on management breakfast & lunch meetings, retreats for the executive "leadership" team, but do what you can to keep those kids off the books.

With respect to internal case reviews, if they are even completed, they are vetted through the regional director of Child Protection office and pertinent details that impact practice and decision-making are not going to end up in the report. Things like workload, staffing and whether a manager actually made the decision to place a child into a situation like this. Frontline workers have so little discretion anymore, yet are the first to be scapegoated by their superiors, who are looking out for number one, too many bad things coming out is bad for their careers. And, I'm not sure if they train management in this, but they know not to right a lot down, wouldn't want things to be available under Freedom of Information requests, or to show up in the media. Bad optics and not "career enhancing." At least in theory anyways. I think if the truth were known, you would find far more frontline workers scapegoated, punished and even run out of MCFD than you will ever find a supervisor, or manager held to account. It's how things work. The attrition and illness leave rates in MCFD for frontline workers would astound most people, but it doesn't seem to phase the BC government one little bit.

I honestly don't think that the BC government is going to "get" their fidicuary responsibility, obligations & duty of care towards the thousands of children & youth they are supposed to be protecting, until they start to pay the price for their negligence and be held accountable in ways beyond public reporting. There have now been years worth of media and advocacy reports and they haven't made a damn bit of difference and in fact, things have never been worse inside the beast. I think there is very little understanding that the Best Interests of the Child legal and fidiciary duty extends across a child's life and circumstances.
******
Public still in dark 2 years after horrific abuse case
4-year-old girl was battered, starving after placement with unstable relative

Lindsay Kines, Times Colonist. Published: Monday, May 05, 2008

Two senior social workers said the four-year-old girl was the most abused and traumatized child they had ever seen. A doctor said she would have died if she'd remained in the care of her grandmother much longer. And a judge said child welfare officials probably shouldn't have placed such a high-needs child with a woman who drank too much, suffered from panic attacks and worked a night shift.

Yet, two years after the battered and starving girl was hospitalized in Prince George, the public still has no clear idea how such a travesty could happen, or what the B.C. government has done to prevent it from happening again.

"It was a situation which, with any involvement of professional people, [they] would have seen that there was something going to go wrong," defence lawyer H. Bruce Kaun said.

The horrific story only came to light after the Prince George Citizen reported on the provincial court case in January. The 47-year-old grandmother pleaded guilty to assault causing bodily harm to her granddaughter and was placed on three years' probation.

The Times Colonist has since obtained court transcripts and other internal documents from the Ministry of Children and Family Development in an effort to piece the case together.

Those records indicate that the girl was moved from a foster home into her grandmother's care in 2004 with the assistance of both the ministry and Carrier Sekani Family Services. The girl remained there until April 2006, when the ministry, acting on an anonymous tip, discovered that she was being horribly abused.

Reports from that time state the girl had two black eyes, which had been covered with make-up. There were bruises, old and new, all over her body. She had ligature marks on one forearm that suggested she had been bound. She was suffering from pneumonia, had severe head lice and was so malnourished that she ate until she vomited and had to spend more than a week in hospital. There was also evidence that she had, at times, been locked in the basement and possibly had her mouth taped shut.

"But for the fact that some anonymous complainant brought this child's plight to the attention of the authorities ... [the doctor's] prognosis would be that this child would have ended up dead," Judge Michael Brecknell said at the sentencing hearing.

He added: "These events have to be shocking to any member of the community that believes that children are entitled to be treated with love and respect."
The court case, however, offered the public little insight into how child welfare officials could have mishandled the file so badly.

The judge said he found it "unusual" authorities "didn't do much in the way of due diligence, once they assisted in the placement of the child."

Kaun, who defended the grandmother, added that his client "didn't get much help" from child welfare officials in caring for the child, who was born with a heart defect, has suspected Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder and was developmentally delayed.

"There wasn't anyone visiting or helping out, so I would think when you're alerted to a high-needs child like this ... that if you're going to do that kind of placement, there should be ... some type of follow-up," he said.

Instead, the grandmother stopped taking the child to her medical appointments because she was afraid of "them seeing marks on her body," court was told. No one seemed to notice.
© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008

http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=170a3e7e-e0d0-4357-8380-07c91579d101&k=68049

*******
Child abuse case lacks answers
Lindsay Kines, Canwest News Service. Published: Sunday, May 04, 2008
Vancouver Sun.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=ec858586-2765-4738-95a0-acd54bacbbf8&k=63161

Words Don't Fail: Governments Do

2008-04-17T10:27:00.004-07:00

Comments from story When Words Fail, Public EyeOnline By Sean Holman.

Another piece of this that many would not know is that internally, there is little ability to build capacity & competency. Internal training is almost non-existent.

Professional development is crucial in this field. Although the training provided upon being hired is extensive, a missing piece is how people are trained to analyze risk in families. And, of course many communities just don’t have the resources and supports to be part of the solution for families.

Many individuals are promoted who lack the actual practice experience to have the clinical skills, knowledge & abilities required. And since the turnover of workers is so high, you have people becoming "senior" workers with a year under their belt and then they in turn begin "training" & "mentoring" other workers. Then they might get promoted to a supervisory role after a couple of years. This goes for managers too, many of whom haven't even actually worked in child protection, ever.

De-skilling the workforce is also a key piece of the ideology and in child protection, as this latest report suggests, this is lethal for some children & youth. It isn’t the fault of the workers, there are many secret decisions made and then workers have to carry them out. It happens all the time. If something doesn’t make sense on a file, ask who made the actual decision. Many people, internally and externally have been "speaking truth to power" since 2001 when the writing was on the wall and people could analyze that we would be arriving at the place we are today.

And it is an HR illusion & spin about staffing. The attrition & medical leave rates are so high and the initial staffing cuts so deep that they can't even hope to play catch up. And believe me, across the country the word is out that BC is NOT the place to work in child protection.

To bring this into clarity, there are two particular cases that help connect the dots.
One relates to Mr. Allan Dwayne Schoenborn, the man accused of killing his three children in Merritt, BC.

Nothing is yet known about his childhood, but dollars to donuts he was a victim/survivor of the child welfare system of the 80’s, the one that the BC Liberals brought back. This is a man who has a long history of mental illness and substance misuse/abuse, who has quite likely been failed by every system he has ever come into contact with – mental health, criminal justice, probation, education, child welfare, and health. Was he in care, it is quite likely he was, or perhaps should have been at some point as a child. One may also speculate as to whether his partner, Ms. Darcie Clarke might also have had her own history with the child welfare system as a child. There are reasons people choose each other and end up in these kind of relationships, where even more devastating things happen, such as in this case.

Another case is Luke Aday, on trial in Victoria for the random murder of a stranger, James Allanach. Court testimony has heard at length about the neglect and abuse he suffered as a child and his complex psychiatric conditions. These do not just develop on their own, this kind of damage starts in childhood and society pays the cost, as did the poor victim and his family and friends.

Psychiatrist: Accused not a psychopath: Defendant suffered from a 'cluster' of personality disorders, court told

These kind of tragedies don’t just happen for no reason. They aren’t random acts. If you neglect a wound and don’t give it the care, attention & first aid it needs, it becomes infected, sometimes gangrene sets in and you lose something valuable. Abuse, deprivation and neglect in childhood beget marginalization, mental illness, sometimes violence and devastation when people become adults. Then the cycle is repeated as these childhood victims/survivors become parents themselves. With support, timely and meaningful intervention from skilled, knowledgeable and caring professionals, including child protection social workers, therapists, family support workers, addiction counsellours, probation officers and many others tragedies can be averted. It is whether the system, the government itself, places a high importance on this.

From where we sit, we see the BC government pouring millions into the 10 day party that is the Olympics, multi-million dollar cost overruns on convention centres and other projects that will take decades for BC taxpayers to pay off. However, around the province, children are abused, neglected and BC leads the country in child poverty for the 4th year running. As the Representative’s latest report, Amanda, Savanah, Rowen & Serena: From Loss to Learning highlights, children are dying around the province. Those tragedies occur as a direct result of the BC Liberal government, no-one else is responsible for those public policy decisions, well except for the Canadian government.

As we head into another summer, where caseloads will sit in crisis and uncovered, it’s not too late to start the planning for improvements in child protection. The decision rests solely with the government. Here are the top 10 things the BC government could do right now to prevent even more tragedies from occurring to citizens of BC:

1. Simplify and clarify specific priorities and tasks – Ie. child protection activities over paperwork;
2. Decrease administrative burden & duplication of paperwork for social workers;
3. Hire additional social work assistants around the province for each office;
4. Re-deploy child protection trained senior workers & supervisors from specialty positions (family development response & family group conferencing, policy analysts and other “special projects”) into the field to lower caseloads and add practice experience to teams;
5. Hire retired social workers for part-time and short-term contracts;
6. Expand hiring of individuals with diverse bachelor & masters degrees and experience in the social services, train and have senior workers mentor them;
7. Create mentoring roles for senior staff for new workers;
8. Increase the work and utility of community services managers;
9. Put short-term funding into community support agencies to boost family support workers who work with families in their homes;
10. Halt all plans for continuing the devolution of services (Aboriginal child protection) for at least 2 years and provide additional funding to Community Living BC and Aboriginal agencies who are already performing child protection duties so they can begin providing more services to those in need.

Child Welfare in BC: The Stuff Nightmares are Made of

2008-04-16T14:17:00.004-07:00

Make no mistake, there isn’t a time in this province over the last 7 years that MCFD has not struggled and failed to meet the needs of some of the most vulnerable, whether that is in the North, or in any region around BC. These cases aren’t anomalies. Read the BC Coroner's Service Statistics. Unfortunately you won't read any BCCS recommendations for MCFD in their last report, as the secrets are safe there, with a former MCFD insider well placed to keep a lid on things in BCCS. These children have LOST their lives, their families have been devastated and torn apart, because of the public policies and purposeful actions of the BC Liberal government from the time they came into office in 2001. It has been and continues to be non-stop chaos, designed and implemented by people who often have not actually worked in child protection, nor working in child welfare in BC and have even a passing familiarity of the issues and terrain. This is part of the neo-conservative ideology of the BC Liberals. This is what it has looks like:

- Funding cuts, downsizing & increase of workload for remaining workers,
- Deregulation, increase of administrative burdens and toxic work environment,
- Decentralize major tasks, oversight & accountability,
- Alternative Service Delivery (ASD) – devolve services from direct government from Community Living BC & now Aboriginal Services (April 1st 2008 all Aboriginal child protection in Vancouver is now the responsibility of Vancouver Aboriginal Child & Family Services Society).

The big problem is, organizations and people like KAP and many others have been trying to tell the government that this kind of governance ideology won’t work in child protection, THE COSTS ARE JUST TOO HIGH and the VICTIMS who really bear that cost are no longer with us because of a profound systemic failure, a self-serving and destructive force called the BC government, which is supposed to protect them. What has worked is being able to place things behind closed doors, no government responsibility, no accountability, arms length and the BC government doesn’t have to be responsible for a whole lot of children dying around the province. They’ve gotten away with this for 7 years.

Ask MCFD to release the statistics on the attrition rate of social workers. On the numbers of social workers who’ve resigned, gone on medical leaves, how about suicides of social workers? These are all closely guarded and anyone who does ask is likely put on a hit list and referred to the Minister’s office.

Or they are silenced and savaged until they shut up and leave so they can continue to live themselves. Workers are just literally being ripped apart working in this toxic and dysfunctional organization in every region in the province. Many young, new workers (majority women) are quitting in droves, completely burnt out by the time they reach their mid-20’s, after one, or two years on the job. But does the organization do anything to improve the working conditions? Absolutely not. Ask yourself, would you want to send your daughter, fresh out of university, into a home where someone is mentally ill/a drug addict/has criminal convictions/is involved in crime and discuss how they’re caring for their children, whether they should keep them? How about with no cell phone, by herself? It happens every day in this province and MCFD gets away with it.

Ask MCFD the amount of your taxpayer dollars that have gone into paying Worksafe BC fines for breaching legal duties and responsibilities for occupational safety & health (OSH)? They’ve been fined thousands of dollars. They have money for lots of executive and management retreats and lunches, failed experiments, but none for workers, or cell phones.

Right now, how many child death reviews are happening in MCFD? Do they even have the numbers? How many involve children & youth involved with CLBC? Do they have the numbers? Do the authorities know that each regional director makes the decision on whether a review even takes place, or not? And as those who’ve written reports know, those final reports are edited & re-written by MCFD personnel before they are released.

I think it is time that the United Nations became involved in the conduct of the BC government over this Ministry in its’ systemic negligence towards children in need of protection. MCFD Deputy Minister Lesley Du Toit, has been affiliated with the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD) for a long time. How does this all connect for her? She knows Canada is a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and has a strong background in child welfare. She more than anyone in BC knows the worst of what is happening, except for Marilyn Hedlund, the MCFD provincial director of Child Protection. And a note to all of you, after Ms. Hedlund’s left the leadership of the child welfare system in Saskatchewan, it required and received a huge cash infusion, which only usually happens when there are a slough of child deaths, or there are BIG lawsuits.

**********************

Hard-hitting report on the deaths of four children in northern BC released

Vancouver/CKNW(AM980). April 16th 2008.

BC’s independent child and youth representative has released a hard-hitting report on the deaths of four children in northern BC in the past decade. Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond says BC’s child protection system failed the children on numerous levels. Turpel-Lafond reviewed the deaths of 3-year-old Savannah Hall, 4-year-old Amanda Simpson, 7-month-old Serena Wiebe and 14-month-old Rowen Von Neiderhausern. Three of the children were aboriginal, one was in foster care - all had some contact with the system. The report identifies key deficiencies such as failure to recognize child abuse, inadequate child protection investigations, and information sharing...it talks about ineffective training of social workers, staffing shortages, and high caseloads. Turpel-Lafond makes 11 recommendations, saying current practices have shown no improvement since these children died.

**
Government failing children at risk
Lindsay Kines, Times Colonist. Published: Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Excerpt:

The child welfare system failed four children who died in northern B.C. from 1999 to 2005, and the provincial government has yet to learn from its mistakes, a hard-hitting report from the independent children's watchdog says.
Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said her investigation of the deaths found recurring problems including sub-standard safety assessments, staff shortages and poor communication between the Ministry of Children and Family Development and other professionals.
"Most significantly, the investigation found an inability on the part of the ministry to learn from valuable lessons," she told a press conference. "Even internal ministry reviews of these deaths provided lessons that were not returned to the front-lines of the system - including not returned to this day."
Turpel-Lafond said the "standard of practice has not appreciably improved" since the time of the children's deaths.
The report examined the lives and deaths of Amanda Simpson, Savannnah Hall, Rowen Von Niederhausern and Serena Wiebe. Each child had a history of family involvement with the child welfare system.
Turpel-Lafond said the deaths occurred at time when the ministry's northern region was struggling to provide service, while trying to recruit, train and retain staff.
"At the time of each of these deaths, major policy changes were underway on top of this shifting foundation of high staff turnover, staff shortages, and resource limitations," she said.

http://www.canada.com/victoriatimescolonist/news/story.html?id=605c7e32-fb45-4c9d-9d9e-f04f9c6ac39a&k=93562

Centre of Excellence for Learning Disabled Students

2008-03-10T12:34:00.003-07:00

Learning disabled students could get own centre of excellence

Janet Steffenhagen, Vancouver Sun
Published: Monday, March 10, 2008

VANCOUVER - A centre of excellence to help children with learning disabilities could soon open in Vancouver if the school board approves a proposal tonight, chairman Clarence Hansen said Sunday.

Hansen said the centre would employ special-education teachers to work with students and develop programs to meet their needs. It would also offer professional development for teachers to ensure those programs continue after the students return to their home schools.

The proposal, which doesn't yet have a price tag, is one of several dealing with special education to be considered by trustees at tonight's meeting. Another calls for an audit in all Lower Mainland schools to compare the actual cost of special education with the dollars provided by the Education Ministry.

Hansen predicted the audit would increase pressure for more funding, adding that in his opinion, "the ministry has to cough up more bucks."

He said the proposed centre would be different from the controversial "model" school for special-needs children that Education Minister Shirley Bond was promoting a year ago because it would be part of the Vancouver district rather than being a provincially run school.

The proposals to be discussed tonight were floated late last year by a group called Parents for Successful Inclusion. Spokeswomen Dawn Steele and Patti Bacchus said they are pleased the district is taking their recommendations seriously.

If approved, the proposals would represent "first steps" in restoring supports for thousands of special-needs students in Vancouver public schools, they said in an e-mail Sunday.

Meanwhile, the Learning Disabilities Association of B.C. has started a petition pressing government to meet the education needs of all children through early screening for special needs and prompt intervention.

It also calls for:
- Specific funding for special-education programs that covers actual costs.
- Pre- and in-service training for all teachers to help them meet the diverse needs in their classrooms.
- A third-party appeal process for parents to deal quickly with complaints and monitor compliance.

The association's Cathie Camley said her group started the petition out of sheer frustration at a B.C. Supreme Court decision overturning a B.C. Human Rights Tribunal ruling that had ordered schools to provide adequate services for students with severe learning disabilities or pay for them to attend private schools.

Parents had hoped the human-rights decision would force government to provide much-needed services, she said, adding the petition gives voice to "their disappointment, anger, frustration and sadness."

Sun education reporter
jsteffenhagen@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Sun 2008
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/westcoastnews/story.html?id=a267f13b-308b-49ec-9fed-440b9bac7f93

Double that for BC's Beleaguered Child Protection Workers

2008-03-07T10:16:00.002-08:00

Manitoba child-welfare workers stressed, some assaulted: poll

Last Updated: Friday, March 7, 2008 10:33 AM CT
CBC News

Workers in the Manitoba government's Child and Family Services Division say they are overworked, stressed and have at times been assaulted, a union-sponsored survey shows.
The poll was commissioned by the Manitoba Government Employees Union, which represents more than 300 unionized child-welfare workers in the province. A third of them responded to a telephone poll conducted in mid-February.

The biggest concern was excessive workload — identified as a problem by almost half of those polled — followed by a lack of resources, the union said in a statement Friday.

Three-quarters of those polled said it has become more difficult to meet their responsibilities on the job in recent years.

One in three reported being assaulted, while 92 per cent said they had been threatened. Of those who said they were assaulted, 20 per cent said they required medical attention for injuries they suffered.

The union said it had no information on whether police were called to deal with the reported cases of assault and threats.

More than two-thirds said they had spent their own money to buy things for the children or families they work with.

Union president Peter Olfert said the poll confirms what he'd heard anecdotally.
"There's a huge level of stress in dealing with some of these very volatile issues," he said.
"They're working with huge caseloads. They're working under very changing environments. They don't have the resources they require at the front end, and they have health and safety issues they have to deal with. It's a very difficult and stressful job."

Committed to hire 150

The provincial government keeps promising to lighten the workload by hiring more staff, Olfert said, but that hasn't happened yet.

Provincial officials said they have hired or are in the process of hiring 82 more workers. They've committed to hiring 150 over the next three years.

The negative publicity Child and Family Services workers often receive makes the situation worse, Olfert said.

The union is launching an ad campaign to draw attention to the positive results workers often achieve.

"We want to also highlight some of the successes our members have working in these very difficult circumstances," Olfert said.

Despite problems they've encountered, more than half of the poll's respondents said they liked their jobs.

The survey was conducted for the union by Viewpoints Research Ltd. of Winnipeg.

CFS agencies prepare for shift in approach

Manitoba to spend $42M to improve child welfare system

More CLBC Group Home Closures

2008-03-06T16:31:00.003-08:00

Group home had to close, operators say
NDP releases letter citing budget cuts; B.C. still says it was 'mutual decision'

Lindsay Kines and Jeff Rud, Times Colonist
Published: Thursday, March 06, 2008.

The operators of a Victoria group home for special-needs children say the B.C. government has forced them out of business, contrary to claims by Children's Minister Tom Christensen that it was a "mutual decision."

In a letter to parents and caregivers, Corner House director Joy Moncrieff and manager Val Harrison said government cut the home's budget so drastically "that we had no choice but to agree to a closure of the facility."

"It has been a fulfilling eight years for us at Corner House, getting to know so many wonderful children and their parents," Moncrieff and Harrison say in the letter, a copy of which was released yesterday by the NDP. "Writing this letter has been one of the hardest things we have had to do."

Parents who needed a break from caring for a child with complex needs were able to leave their son or daughter at Corner House for short periods of time. The group home, which served 19 clients, will close at the end of April.

Christensen told the media on Tuesday that the home's operators reached a "mutual decision" to end its $260,000-a-year contract with Community Living B.C., the government agency that services children and adults with developmental disabilities. He stuck by those comments yesterday despite the letter from Moncrieff and Harrison. "I haven't seen any letter," he said. "I've been advised that CLBC had worked with Corner House."

But NDP children's critic Nicholas Simons ridiculed Christensen's version of events.
"You can't come to someone and say you've got a choice between the noose or the electric chair and then say that they've got a choice," he said. "The fact of the matter is government's cut funding to children needing services and their families."

Christensen said government can deliver the same respite service to four times as many families by shifting the money to a cheaper model. Families will now be able to have a caregiver come into their home, or let their child stay with the caregiver for a day or a weekend, he said.
"I think, on balance, this is good news in that we're going to have more children and families in the Victoria area who now have access to respite," he said.

The families who use the Davie Street facility, however, say the decision is anything but good news for their children.

"It devastated my son," said Mary Japp, a single parent of two autistic children. "Because as a child with autism he struggles socially. And for one weekend every month, he could go to Corner House and he could just be a regular kid.

"Everybody there has a challenge and it's just normal to have a challenge, and so it wasn't something that made him feel like the odd man out. He finally felt like he had a place where he could just be himself. So he's losing that social connection which, for a child who's socially disadvantaged, that's a big blow.''

Annetta Orrick said she doesn't want a different type of service. Her 14-year-old daughter with autism, cerebral palsy and an intellectual disorder has been going to Corner House one weekend a month for seven years.

Orrick will now have to hire an individual caregiver for brief periods of respite, she said.
"It's very difficult to find people to do these small jobs," she said. "It's never their real job. It's something they're picking up. They're generally a student or it's something that they're doing for an extra bit of pocket money. So they do not look at it as a career or a professional service. It's glorified babysitting."

Orrick said it's also up to her to assess the reliability and qualifications of the caregiver. "There's no accountability," she said.

lkines@tc.canwest.com
jrud@tc.canwest.com
© Times Colonist (Victoria) 2008

***********************************
I fail to see how this will achieve Mr. Campbell's great goal for people with special needs:

Goal #3 - Build the best system of support in Canada for persons with disabilities, those with special needs, children at risk and seniors.

Perhaps Minister Christensen and Premier Campbell can provide some concrete evidence to prove that the failed experiment that is CLBC has improved the lives of at-risk populations and their families? Lois Hollstedt, the Chair of CLBC seems to think otherwise, when she publically stated that they still don't have actual waitlists to see just how many children in the province aren't receiving any services yet. And, more importantly, Ms. Hollstedt stated that CLBC hasn't been given the budget to allow them to meet the province's great goal for people with disabilities, or the goal of the legislation that created CLBC. A pretty important statement for the head of the CLBC board to make publically. It seems to contradict the government's position.

MCFD & CLBC Fail to Live up to It's Obligations & Promises

2008-03-04T08:39:00.002-08:00

Group of adults with disabilities may lose their B.C. home
L'Arche home says it can't keep going without more provincial money

Last Updated: Tuesday, March 4, 2008 9:38 AM ET
CBC News

A group of developmentally disabled adults may lose the only stable home they've ever known, and the group that runs the Burnaby, B.C. facility says the Campbell government is to blame.

Trudi Shaw, board president of L'Arche Greater Vancouver, tells Go Public reporter Kathy Tomlinson, right, that the Campbell government is failing B.C.'s most vulnerable citizens.(CBC)
"There's something going on in this province that people need to be aware of and it concerns all of us, as taxpayers and citizens," said Trudi Shaw, board president of L'Arche Greater Vancouver. "This government seems to be overlooking some of its most vulnerable and marginalized citizens."

L'Arche, an internationally recognized organization, is unique because it not only houses developmentally disabled adults, but strives to give them meaningful roles in the community. Its woodworking shop in Burnaby was one example — a thriving workplace for the disabled that L'Arche recently had to shut down, partially due to its budget problems.

"Without exception everybody [who lives there] has said they want to stay in a L'Arche community — and we have been told that is not possible," Shaw said.

'Disaster' feared for residents

Barry Thomson, one of two dozen people who live in the faith-based Burnaby residential care facility, has severe autism, and has been there for 24 years. For people like him, it's highly unusual to find such long-term stability in one home.

Barry Thomson, who has severe autism, stands to lose the only stable home he's known for 24 years. (CBC)

His brother Gordon says he has no idea how his family would cope if that suddenly changed.
"Oh, disaster," Gordon replied when asked what would happen if Barry had to move. "It would be an absolute disaster — unless there were some other place like L'Arche and I don't think there is."

L'Arche is a normally a media-shy organization, but the group decided to "go public" about its funding crisis because they feel they've exhausted all of their options.

L'Arche has gone without any budget increases for eight years, Shaw said, while its overhead, including salaries, has climbed. The group needs about a $1.5 million boost to their $2 million provincial allocation to make up for an historic shortfall.

Gordon Thomson, Barry's brother, says moving him into foster care would be a disaster.(CBC)
Without that funding, Shaw said, residents might be forced to move into adult foster care, where they move around frequently and sometimes don't get the love and support they need.

"We look at what is happening in the foster care system and we are really frightened," Shaw said. "I'm afraid that they will cease to have a sense of their own value and dignity. We're talking about people being isolated; we're talking about people ceasing to have a sense of value and purpose in their life."

Request for more money denied

A statement by Community Living B.C., the Crown corporation that provides L'Arche with provincial funding, read in part: "Our first commitment is to those individuals with developmental disabilities and the families that L'Arche serves. CLBC supports the model of service delivery that L'Arche has been providing for the past 25 years … L'Arche has asked for a 75 per cent increase to their contract to provide service differently to the same number of individuals. CLBC does not support that request."

CLBC CEO Rick Mowles was not available for an interview.

Thomson said he doesn't understand why the Crown corporation would shortchange a place such as L'Arche to save money. He figures L'Arche saves millions of tax dollars in the long run by keeping its residents out of already overcrowded hospital emergency rooms.

Laney Bryenton, of the B.C. Association for Community Living, says hundreds of organizations are starved for funding while hundreds of disadvantaged people remain on waiting lists. (CBC)
"Barry had to go into the hospital about a month ago and the staff went down with him and stayed with him in the hospital," Thomson said of his autistic brother. "You wouldn't see staff from any other home doing that."

If Barry and the others had to move, Shaw said, they would not only lose their home, they would lose their second family.

"They've lived in this environment where they have been loved and where their gifts have been recognized and drawn out for years and years and years," Shaw said.

Similar shortfalls across the province

"[L'Arche] is very representative of organizations that have not had increases in their contracts," said Laney Bryenton, executive director of the B.C. Association for Community Living, an advocate for thousands of developmentally disabled people in B.C.

Each year, Bryenton said, the Campbell government fails to give CLBC the money it needs, so the Crown corporation has no choice but to shortchange hundreds of organizations such as L'Arche. In the latest budget for 2008-09, Bryenton said, the government gave CLBC $22.3 million for new services, when its service plan said it needed at least $35.5 million to shorten its waiting list.
Approximately 700 developmentally disabled adults are on currently on that waiting lists in B.C., unable to get various types of assistance, Bryenton said.

"We've got a lot of stories of families who have their 19-, 20-, 21-year-old [disabled child] simply sitting at home," Bryenton said. "We have stories of families who have had to quit work in order to look after their 19-year-old because when their child transitioned out of school, there was nothing for them."

When she hears Premier Gordon Campbell promise to make B.C. 'the best place on earth' for disadvantaged people, Bryenton said, she wants to see the proof: "We want them to make a substantive investment in those services. We want them to make good on that promise."
Tom Christensen, the minister responsible for funding CLBC, told CBC News the Crown corporation received a 6.5 per cent budget increase this year, and what it does with the money is not his decision.

"I have confidence that CLBC will work with different service providers to look at some of the challenges they face and insure that both the service provider and CLBC are focused on what they both should be focused on — and that is serving the clients that need their assistance," Christensen said.

He refused to comment on the future of the L'Arche residential care home.
**********************
FYI - Rick Mowles, CEO of CLBC, is also the employer's bargaining agent for Community Social Service Employees Association (CSSEA) in times of bargaining new collective agreement. Anyone smell conflict of interest there? How much has CLBC spent on office renovations since July 1st 2005?

So much for Great Goals for Literacy and People with Disabilities

2008-03-03T08:25:00.001-08:00

Court deals blow to disabled students

Catherine Rolfsen, Vancouver Sun
Published: Sunday, March 02, 2008

METRO VANCOUVER - The B.C. Supreme Court has quashed a landmark human rights tribunal ruling that advocates hoped would mean major changes for students with learning disabilities in B.C. schools.

In a written decision released Friday, the court overturned a 2005 ruling that the B.C. Education Ministry and the North Vancouver school board discriminated against learning-disabled students when it failed to give them proper support.

The tribunal decision hinged on the case of Jeffrey Moore, who struggled with dyslexia for four years in public school before his parents pulled him out in favour of a costly private school.

"We're extremely disappointed," said his father, Rick Moore, of the court's ruling. "It doesn't seem right to me that the only learning-disabled children who are given a chance to succeed are the ones whose parents can afford an expensive private school education."

The tribunal had ordered the ministry to provide full funding for the education of severely learning-disabled students. But with Friday's decision, Rick Moore worries that other students will continue to face Jeffrey's challenges at public school.

Rick Moore said he has not decided whether to appeal the decision.

The Learning Disabilities Association of B.C. estimates that one in 10 Canadian students has a learning disability such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, dyslexia or dyscalculia.
North Vancouver was in a financial squeeze between 1992 and 1995 when Jeffrey was a young student at Braemar elementary school.

Although identified as a learning-disabled student and referred to a special district facility called DC1, that facility was closed just weeks later to save money.

Jeffrey's parents elected to send him to Kenneth Gordon, a Burnaby school for students with specific learning disabilities, which cost the family nearly $100,000 for nine years. There, his reading skills and self-esteem skyrocketed, his father said.

Jeffrey is now a 21-year-old apprentice plumber. But his father believes that had he remained in public schools, he probably would have dropped out.

Rick Moore said identification and assistance for learning disabled students has worsened since Jeffrey left public school.

"Right now it seems like learning-disabled students are invisible and the education system can ignore them," he said.

Education Minister Shirley Bond was unavailable for an interview Sunday, and the North Vancouver school board chair could not be reached for comment.

The court's decision found the tribunal failed to establish "differential treatment" of severely learning-disabled students such as Jeffrey.

"The DC1 was one of many models for delivery of specialized services to [severely learning disabled] and other special needs students..." wrote Justice Janice Dillon. "Moore was not completely denied a service. In fact, he was provided with a number of accommodations."
Thealzel Lee, president of the Learning Disabilities Association of B.C., said the ruling shows that the provincial government has not yet taken responsibility for educating all children.
Lee said a recent survey of about 350 parents by her association found that 61 per cent felt the system poorly met or failed to meet their children's needs, while just over half believed that their child's teachers were knowledgeable about learning disabilities.

A Langley inquiry into special education published earlier this year identified several province-wide problems, including underfunding, lack of resources in classrooms, and inadequate teacher training to deal with special needs.

crolfsen@png.canwest.com

http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=aea7331a-eb6b-4cf7-900d-d3a9c8c4c549&k=2270

Special Needs Delivery System, Adult Services & "Internal Review" by CLBC

2008-02-29T21:27:00.003-08:00

Meanwhile, under the microscope
The Public Eye Online.

Yesterday, child and youth representative Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond released a monitoring brief identifying a number of key concerns with the service delivery system for children with special needs. But, what wasn't mentioned in the coverage of that brief, is that Ms. Turpel-Lafond also suggested during her news conference the need for a wider review of services for the developmentally disabled in British Columbia. "I know there's been an internal review of CLBC adult services inside the government," she said. "But it may very well be it may very well be that there needs to be a full-blow external evaluation of this area. The challenge for me is I only have the children's piece."

Posted by Sean Holman at 07:48 AM

************************************
Representative's Office:

February 26, 2008
Action required to improve supports for children/youth with special needs
Vulnerable children and youth with special needs and their families and caregivers need a more responsive and accountable system of supports, said BC's Representative for Children and Youth, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond.

Other documents shared at the Representative's February 26 news conference:
Monitoring brief - System of services for children and youth with special needs

Thumbs up for Aboriginal schools

2008-02-29T21:25:00.001-08:00

Native-only getting the thumbs-up from BC's child advocate
Feb, 29 2008 - 12:40 PM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - A native-only public school proposal in Prince George is getting the thumbs-up from BC's child advocate.

Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond says the education system needs to do more to improve graduation rates for aboriginal children, and that means celebrating their native heritage through courses and activities.

"Many first nations students in British Columbia feel they have challenges in some of their school settings, especially in the urban context, they experience racism, they may experience exclusion. We have to work on that, but we may also need to create some choices where you have those schools."

BC has an 80 percent graduation rate, but only 48 percent of aboriginal children graduate....that rate falls to 15 percent for aboriginal children in care.

Important BC Child Welfare Case

2008-02-29T20:40:00.002-08:00

Parents hope judge rules seizure of sextuplets was unconstitutional

Last Updated: Friday, February 29, 2008 11:02 PM ET
The Canadian Press

Excerpt:

Medical opinion, the government's duty to protect children, parental rights and freedom of religion clashed in a B.C. courtroom Friday over the seizure of three premature sextuplets.
Three of the four surviving sextuplets were taken from their home last year and given blood transfusions, contrary to the beliefs of their Jehovah's Witness parents.

They've long since returned to their parents, but the mother and father want the B.C. Supreme Court to declare that the seizure was unconstitutional.

Justice Donald Brenner said Friday that such applications often proceed in what is perceived as a life-and-death issue.

But Shane Brady, the lawyer for the parents, said the children were not in danger and because the parents weren't given the right to make their case in court before the children were taken away, the law allowing government to seize children should be declared unconstitutional...

B.C., New Brunswick, Northwest Territories and Nunavut are the only jurisdictions in Canada that allow the government to seize children without a hearing.

Brady said he wants the court to rule that it is unconstitutional to do so.

Other CBC stories:

B.C. sextuplets didn't need transfusions, expert testifies
Sextuplet parents take B.C. to court over baby seizures

**************************************************
What this is essentially about is challenging the Child, Family & Community Services Act (CFCSA), the prevailing legislation for child protection in BC. As it stands now, MCFD removes children from their parents, or legal guardians care prior to going to court and asking a judge's permission to do so. If a removal takes place, planned, or otherwise, MCFD must appear in court within 7 days of the removal and present their reasons for why less intrusive measures were not available. It is often the case that the matter is adjourned until parents can obtain legal counsel, although legal aid lawyers (Duty counsel) are often available to provide initial advice. Unless MCFD withdraws the removal at the time of the first appearance, the child(ren) remains in foster care, or in a placement with someone else. At some point, a judge will be satisfied the removal was necessary and that the child was in need of protection, or they may disagree and return the children home, or the children might be returned home right away by MCFD, or placed with kith & kin.

If the judge finds the parent's rights were violated, or the children were not at imminent risk he would find that the children shouldn't have been removed in the first place and that the CFCSA
is unconstitutional and their rights were violated. This could set a precedent and turn the child protection system on it's head.

CLBC Excuses: How About the thousands of kids or adults not even on their radar at all?

2008-01-29T16:27:00.000-08:00

Agency claims repeated tries to house disabled teen

Man's former foster parent disputes account of Community Living B.C.

Lindsay Kines, Times Colonist

Published: Friday, January 25, 2008

A B.C. government agency says it has tried repeatedly to help a 19-year-old developmentally disabled man who has at times been left to roam the streets on Vancouver Island.

In response to a recent series of Times Colonist stories and editorials, Community Living B.C. issued a statement saying it has explored more than a dozen housing options that met resistance from the young man or his advocates.

CLBC says the man left a temporary group home last year after one month to stay with friends in a neighbouring community.

"The individual is an adult and, as much as we might agree that an individual may make choices that do not appear in their best interest, CLBC has no authority to compel an adult to accept its offered supports and services," Roz Ingram, acting director of communications, said in the release.

The agency's account, however, is disputed by the former foster parent on whose doorstep the 19-year-old arrived two months ago.

Michael Steele, who looked after the man as a child, has been housing him since late November while pressing CLBC to find him a permanent home.

"If a dozen housing options have been explored, CLBC has failed to communicate them to either [the man] or his advocates," Steele said. "I am aware of six." Those include a temporary group home, one caregiver placement that failed and four other cases in which the group homes or caregivers refused to accept the man, who suffers from a range of problems including fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, Steele said.

In the case of the failed group home, Steele said it was a youth facility designed for brief stays and located some distance from the community in which the man grew up. The young man was told the placement would be temporary, but he became increasingly frustrated the longer he stayed.

"The notion that [the young man] has refused and continues to refuse offered CLBC services is a myth which CLBC's representatives have tried to float from time to time," Steele said.

He pointed to the fact the young man has stayed with him for two months, while regularly attending a day program as proof he can thrive if given the proper support.

In its statement, CLBC also challenged the TC's characterization of the man as having the mental capacity of a six-year-old.

"A developmental age generally applies to one aspect of a person's life," Ingram writes. "However, when a developmental age is generalized to the whole person this can be misleading. Every individual has a range of skills and abilities that will be at different levels."

CLBC argues that the young man in this case can speak, makes his wishes known in writing, has friends, attends vocational training and gets around on his own.

The TC based its stories on a court report that quoted a registered psychologist as stating that "except for gross motor skills, in most areas of independent function, [his] age equivalent range is at about the six-year level."

Elsewhere, in the same report, the authors says that a consistent theme emerged in interviews with officials and caregivers that the young man "functions at an age of approximately six to eight years, is extremely sensitive to peer interactions, is unable to self-monitor his behaviours, and is incapable of living independently."

NDP children's critic Nicholas Simons, who has also been advocating for the man, accused CLBC of "splitting hairs" instead of dealing with the issues.

"Everyone involved will tell you that whether he's got the capacity of a six-year-old or a 10-year-old, the fact remains that he needs 24-hour supervision for his safety and for the safety of the community."

lkines@tc.canwest.com

They Just Couldn't Get Away with this One

2007-12-15T19:11:00.000-08:00

Budget boost to BC's representative for children and youth
Dec, 14 2007 - 1:50 PM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - Humbled members of the legislative finance committee reversed themselves today, granting a 1.7 million dollar budget boost to BC's representative for children and youth.

The decision comes just one week after the committee pared down that request to one million dollars.

"I’m hoping that there's gonna be more Santa and less Scrooge after today."

And Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond got her wish after once again making the case for a 36 per-cent budget boost. "The decision of the committee was unanimous, that the child and youth representative receive the full budget ask." says committee chair Bill Bennett.

Bennett also says the public appreciates when politicians admit they made a mistake. New Democrat committee member Bruce Ralston says today's meeting was just to provide the government with some political cover.

"The government members have been politically embarrassed and forced into this decision, which fortunately for the office, is the right decision."

Child Protection in BC These Days

2007-12-14T17:12:00.000-08:00

Neglected by the province, foster care is a fast track to the streets
News Features

By Pieta Woolley. Publish Date: December 13, 2007
Georgia Straight. Excerpt:

Jody Coyen isn't surprised that half of the women Robert Pickton is guilty of killing are alumnae of the provincial foster-care system. At 34, she's already a veteran of the Downtown Eastside's street life and was friends with many of the missing women. In an interview at the Ovaltine Cafe on December 11, Coyen told the Georgia Straight that "most people down here have the same story. They were abused as children, come from alcoholic homes, stayed in foster care."

In fact, 65 percent of people who live on the street are former kids in care, according to a study commissioned by the B.C. Federation of Foster Parent Associations. The statistic chills the federation's president, Melanie Filiatrault. Having fostered 42 children, she knows some of them are not making good choices and are vulnerable, just like Pickton's victims.

"It just makes my heart ache," she told the Straight in a phone interview. "It's almost criminal."

********************
It is criminal, not just almost. Canada became a signatory to the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1989. The BC government is well aware of that fact and the responsibilities this entails. The provincial & federal governments have perpetuated and encouraged an onslaught on the human rights and needs of children, youth, marginalized and vulnerable citizens. Why has this happened and why does it continue? In spite of numerous child protection reviews, inquiries and recommendations, government, media and academic reports, coroner's inquests, advocates and the Representative and the pleading of many to stop the carnage and destruction of a generation or more of people. The answer is and always has been greed, power and a complete lack of concern and disconnection from the lives of those who need and deserve government care the most.

And just so people are clear, it's no surprise Vancouver has also now been chosen as the break-in capital of North America. That the UN Special Rapporteur on Housing was shocked and brutal in his assessment of housing and homelessness BC. That BC leads the country in child poverty for the 4th year in a row. And that thousands of people in BC cannot even access income assistance to provide even basic shelter, income, food and much needed medical benefits.

BC Coroner's Report fails to offer meaningful insight & Recommendations for Aboriginal & MCFD children & Youth

2007-12-13T08:15:00.000-08:00

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among children in BC
Dec, 12 2007 - 4:20 PM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - Second only to motor vehicle accidents, suicide is a leading cause of death among children under 18 in BC.

The finding comes in a review of 244 child deaths between 2003 and 2006 conducted by the Child Death Review Unit of the BC Coroner's Service.

Unit director, Kelli Kilpatrick says a number of recommendations have been made, "We're working with the Firearms Canada Centre to look at the possibility of trigger locks for unsecured firearms because that kept coming up in the children's deaths we reviewed."

Kilpatrick’s says they are also working with the Ministry of Education on risk assessment protocols.

Kilpatrick was speaking on CKNW's The World Today.
**********************
Why is it that this report and review fails to discuss anything substantial about the reasons so many young people are choosing suicide? How about looking at whether they were denied intervention and support from MCFD? How about some real recommendations for proactive intervention. Right now there is a suicide epidemic for youth in the Hazelton area, what meaningful insights and recommendations does the BCCS have to offer, or MCFD? Last time I checked the province still has responsibility for child protection & safety of ALL young people.
Maybe more interest could be shown while they are ALIVE, than after they're gone. This is a tragedy and brings shame to our province.

Justice for Savanah and all of the Others

2007-11-04T19:26:00.000-08:00

Coroner's Jury Rules Toddler's Death a Homicide

Nov, 04 2007 - 3:20 AM

PRINCE GEORGE/CJCI-CKNW(AM980) - The coroner's jury at the inquest into the death of Prince George toddler Savannah Hall has come to a verdict.

The five-woman jury deliberated for nine hours and determined Hall died from a brain injury due to suffocation.

They have ruled her death a homicide, but that classification does not assign blame.

26 recommendations were made, directed mainly at the Ministry of Children and Families.

They include asking the ministry to improve procedures when allegations of neglect or mistreatment are brought forward and to clarify the policy on the use of a harness.

During testimony, the inquest heard a harness was used to treat the little girl's night terrors.

Savannah Hall was found unresponsive in her Prince George foster care home in January 2001 and died a few days later in hospital.

What Is Wrong with Police who Would Taser a Sick Child?

2007-10-26T08:02:00.000-07:00

Bizarre incident at Save-On Foods
Oct, 25 2007 - 4:40 PM

NORTH VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - A 14 year old girl in possession of some knives was arrested during the noon hour at Lynn Valley Centre.

North Vancouver police constable Randall Wong describes what happened.

"Two members arrived on scene. They found a young female in the fruit isle stabbing fruit and waving the knives around."

Wong says officers tried tasering the girl, but it deflected off her clothing and knapsack.
The girl finally threw the knives at one of the attending officers and she was subdued.

Police are contemplating charges of assault and threatening.
************************
Is this really the best this society can do for a CHILD who is obviously mentally ill. Seriously, a charge of child abuse must be brought against these officers. This is just a shocking abuse of power against this child. It is time for police to be trained in non-abusive ways of working with people with mental health and psychiatric issues and held accountable for their abuse.

Child Poverty: BC Leads the Country In Spite of $4.1 billion Budget Surplus

2007-10-26T07:52:00.000-07:00

POVERTY: Each and Every Child: Understanding and working with children in the poorest and most difficult situations [publication] [25 October 2007] - This report discusses the challenges that confront Plan and other child-focused organisations as they seek to assist those children whose rights are most violated and who are living in some of the poorest and most difficult situations in the world. Organisations have mainly worked with these children according to different categories, such as street children, children in conflict with the law and children in the worst forms of child labour. However, many children have multiple problems and belong to more than one category or move between categories over time. Many of the root causes and factors that impact on the lives of these children are similar. There is therefore the need to develop a more holistic approach, particularly in terms of prevention. This report proposes a framework that can help staff think about working with these groups of children from an integrated, child-centred and rights-based development perspective.Working with children in the poorest and most difficult situations is important because of significant inequities both within and between countries, and the increasing concentration of poverty among specific marginalised groups in many cases. Within marginalised groups, poverty and lack of opportunity are experienced disproportionately by children. As a result, very large numbers of children live their lives without adequate care and protection from adults and are excluded from the benefits of their societies. In their choice of where and with whom to work, child-focused organisations therefore need to consider how the impact of poverty is distributed between different social groups and within the family, as well as its geographic distribution.Further information

Senior UN official urges rights based approach to achieving anti-poverty targets (10 July 2007)

Plan report: Because I am a Girl: The State of the World's Girls 2007 (May 2007)

For more information, contact:Plan International - HQChobham House, Christchurch Way, Woking, Surrey GU12 1JGTel: +44 1483 755 155 / 733 285; Fax: +44 1483 756 505Email: info@plan-international.orgWebsite: www.plan-international.org/
Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=15260

How Does BC Measure Up?

2007-10-26T07:43:00.000-07:00

DISABILITY: Promoting the rights of children with disabilities [publication] [25 October 2007]
Children's Rights Information Network (CRIN)

Children with disabilities and their families constantly experience barriers to the enjoyment of their basic human rights and to their inclusion in society. Their abilities are overlooked, their capacities are underestimated and their needs are given low priority. Yet, the barriers they face are more frequently as a result of the environment in which they live than as a result of their impairment.While the situation for these children is changing for the better, there are still severe gaps. On the positive side, there has been a gathering global momentum over the past two decades, originating with persons with disabilities and increasingly supported by civilsociety and governments. In many countries, small, local groups have joined forces to create regional or national organisations that have lobbied for reform and changes to legislation. As a result, one by one the barriers to the participation of persons with disabilities as full members of their communities are starting to fall.Progress has varied, however, both between and within countries. Many countries have not enacted protective legislation at all, resulting in a continued violation of the rights of persons with disabilities.The Innocenti Digest on Promoting the Rights of Children with Disabilities attempts to provide a global perspective on the situation of the some 200 million children with disabilities. The Digest is based on reports from countries across regions and from a wide range of sources. These include accounts by persons with disabilities, their families and members of their communities, professionals, volunteers and non-governmental organisations, as well as country reports submitted by Member States to the United Nations, including to human rights treaty bodies responsible for monitoring the implementation of international human rights treaties.This Digest focuses particularly on the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The latter instrument was signed by an unprecedented 81 countries on opening day, 30 March 2007. As of 15 August 2007, 101 countries had signed the CRPD and 4 had ratified it. For entry into force, it is necessary that the Convention receive 20 ratifications. The Disabilities Convention offers a unique opportunity for every country and every community to reexamine its laws and institutions and to promote changes necessary to ensure that persons with disabilities are guaranteed the same rights as all other persons.It expresses basic human rights in a manner that addresses the special needs and situation of persons with disabilities and provides a framework for ensuring that those rights are realised.

Further information CRIN's thematic page on children and disability

From Exclusion to Equality - realising the rights of persons with disabilities (October 2007)

The new disability Convention and the protection of children

More Victims of the BC Child Welfare system

2007-10-24T07:34:00.000-07:00

Savannah Hall's mother raised concerns with foster-care home, inquest told

Last Updated: Wednesday, October 24, 2007 1:12 AM ET
CBC News

The natural mother of Savannah Hall raised red flags about the girl's foster-care home seven months before the three-year-old died in foster care in January 2001, an inquest heard Tuesday.

Hall said she had concerns about bruises to her daughter's face, legs and feet and she was also concerned about hunger when she visited.

This is a photo of Savannah Hall with her mother, Corinna Hall, and her grandmother at a library in happier times. (Courtesy of Corinna Hall)

"She'd be really hungry when I came over," Hall said. "I'd feed her, but the foster mom told me not to feed her."

Corinna Hall was testifying on the second day of a coroner's inquest into Savannah's death in Prince George, B.C.

Savannah died after being taken by her foster parents to hospital in a coma with massive brain swelling, hypothermia and multiple bruises.

Social workers weren't listening to her concerns, Hall alleged.

Hall also testified she was denied opportunities to be with her daughter on special occasions like her birthday and holidays in the months before Savannah died.

Corinna Hall said Tuesday she's determined to find answers into the death of her three-year-old daughter, Savannah. (Betsy Trumpener/CBC)

One Christmas the foster mother cancelled the get-together, saying the girl was ill, while other pre-arranged visits were also cancelled by the foster mother with little or no explanation, Hall said.

During one visit, Savannah said she didn't want to go back to the foster home.
"She held onto me and started crying," Hall said.

Savannah was found unresponsive in her foster-care home in PrinceGeorge and died in B.C. Children's Hospital two days later.

The inquest, which began Monday, is scheduled to continue through Nov. 2.

With files from the Canadian Press.

Excerpt from Michael Smyth's column

2007-10-21T19:19:00.000-07:00

Spookiest tales of season come from Victoria
Break-ins, shady deals and plain bad behaviour

Michael Smyth, The ProvincePublished: Sunday, October 21, 2007

Halloween seems to have come early to Victoria, where tales of witching-hour break-ins, shady double-dealings and general skulduggery have the provincial capital in an October tizzy.
There's quite a brew bubbling in Victoria's cauldron. And it ain't Red Rose tea. Let's lift the lid and take a peek:

All in the family: Husband-and-wife bureaucrats Ron and Joan Danderfer seemed to have it all. They both had senior, well-paid jobs in the provincial government.

Until last week, that is, when they both quit amid official inquiries into a $10,000 cheque paid to Joan by a consultant who landed a contract with Ron's Health Ministry department.

"The ministry was contacted by the RCMP," Health Minister George Abbott confirmed. "I presume they were looking for information, but I don't know that."

The RCMP refused to comment. So did the Danderfers. But you can bet the office water coolers have been awash in chatter.

The Heat is On...

2007-10-19T19:37:00.000-07:00

Two B.C. officials under audit quit
Married couple may be under investigation by RCMP over cheque

Jonathan Fowlie, Vancouver Sun. Published: Friday, October 19, 2007

VICTORIA -- Two senior government officials whose financial dealings were being audited both quit their jobs this week, and an NDP MLA said Thursday that the RCMP might now be investigating their affairs.

The married couple -- Ron and Joan Danderfer -- held senior positions in different ministries, and were already on leave following an allegation of financial impropriety involving a $10,000 cheque.

NDP health critic Adrian Dix asked Health Minister George Abbott during question period Thursday whether an audit of the couple's dealings had been completed, and to "confirm that the audit ... is now the subject of a police investigation."

Abbott said the audit was continuing and confirmed the police has talked to the government about the case, but would not say whether there was a police investigation. "I am advised that we were contacted by the RCMP in respect of the matter, but I cannot provide any further advice as to the status of that file," he said.

Ron Danderfer was an assistant deputy minister for knowledge management and technology in the Ministry of Health. He also sat on the ministry's eHealth initiatives committee. Joan Danderfer was a senior manager with the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

The audit is being run by the Ministry of Finance's internal audit branch, and involves looking into whether a $10,000 cheque -- issued to Joan Danderfer by a consultant working for her husband -- was appropriate and adhered to ministry policy.

RCMP "E" division spokeswoman Const. Annie Linteau said Thursday she could not confirm or deny if police were investigating the couple. "If there are allegations, they would be looked into, but I can't confirm or deny anything," she said.

Abbott told reporters his ministry had been contacted by the RCMP in July about the matter, but said he did not know what they wanted. Abbott said Ron Danderfer officially left his job on Monday, and was not given severance. Another government official said Joan Danderfer had retired from her job on Wednesday. No one answered the phone at the Danderfer home Thursday.

jfowlie@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Sun 2007

Family, Child and Youth Law analysis

2007-10-19T19:16:00.000-07:00

Family, Children and Youth - Library of Parliament Research Publications.
Child Care in Canada: The Federal Role (16 April 2007)
Child Care in Canada: Regulated, Unregulated, Private or Public [In Brief] (3 June 2004)
Divorce Law in Canada (22 February 2006)
The "Spanking" Law: Section 43 of the Criminal Code (23 January 2007)

Tip of the Iceberg

2007-10-18T19:25:00.000-07:00

Audit targets two B.C. officials
$10,000 cheque sparks probe of married couple

Kelly Sinoski , CanWest News Service
Published: Saturday, July 21, 2007

Two senior civil servants with the B.C. government are on mandatory leave while provincial investigators probe an allegation of financial impropriety involving a cheque from a consultant for almost $10,000.

The married couple -- Ron and Joan Danderfer -- have senior positions in two ministries. Ron Danderfer is an assistant deputy minister for knowledge management and technology division in the Ministry of Health. His wife Joan is a senior manager with the Ministry of Children and Family Development.

The Ministry of Finance's internal audit branch is conducting an audit.

The investigation will look into whether the cheque issued to Joan Danderfer by a consultant working for Ron Danderfer was appropriate and adhered to ministry policy.

The investigation was ordered after deputy health minister Gordon Macatee "received information about the possible actions of a senior staff person at the Ministry of Health which requires answers," he said in written statement Friday.

While on mandatory leave, the Danderfers do not have access to office records or the government computer system.

"Such reviews are standard practice within government any time questions are raised regarding the conduct or actions of staff," Macatee said in a statement.

"We expect a report will be done as quickly as possible, which will tell us whether there are concerns which would require further action.

"We take all such matters seriously and we are committed to maintaining the integrity of the public service."

The Vancouver Sun has learned that the consultant in question is connected with a Web-based health technology company. The company has done work for several health authorities.
Government spokesman Kelly Gleeson said the allegations may prove to be groundless.NDP health critic Adrian Dix called for the government to act quickly on determining whether something improper has been going on.

"Clearly, we expect more information and that the government will come clean quickly on this," he said. "There's a lot at stake. It's important the public confidence is maintained."

Ron Danderfer joined the ministry more than 25 years ago and on Oct. 31, 2003 assumed the role of assistant deputy minister. According to a federal government website, his key role was the strategic development, implementation and evaluation of the information resource management plans of the ministry.

Danderfer provides leadership and ensures the Internet technology strategies, policies, standards and initiatives support the integrated delivery of system-wide health information management, the website said.

He was previously chief executive officer of the B.C. Vital Statistics Agency and is B.C.'s representative on the advisory committee on information and emerging technologies and a board member of the Canadian coordinating office for health technology assessment.

Vancouver Sun
© CanWest News Service 2007

Domestic Violence: What Really Happens Behind Closed Doors

2007-10-13T09:36:00.000-07:00

Spouse killers usually record-free
A Statistics Canada study also suggests victims of abuse are still too afraid to come forward.

By RANDY RICHMOND, SUN MEDIA
The London Free Press

Almost three quarters of people accused of spousal homicide or attempted homicide had no police record of previous abuse, a Statistics Canada study concludes.

That suggests either the violence is coming out of the blue, or victims -- mostly women -- are still too afraid to come forward.

"Out of the blue? No," Megan Walker, head of the London Abused Women's Centre, said yesterday. Despite some improvements in how police and courts handle abuse, many victims are still reluctant to get help from the justice system, she said. "I don't think it's changing."

The Statistics Canada study, released yesterday, examined 11 years of police data. Only 26 per cent of suspected abusers had been accused of earlier spousal violence and only four per cent were considered chronic abusers, with four or more previous incidents reported to police, the study reported. The report says 82 per cent of killers were men and men were far more likely to have a previous record of abuse.

In nine out of 10 cases where women were accused of killing or trying to kill a husband, the attack was the first recorded incident of abuse.

The study also found in cases where there was previous abuse, the episodes become more frequent in the period just preceding the major attack.

Abused women give several reasons why they avoid the criminal justice system, Walker said.
"Women are fearful of the consequences, of retribution, from the abuser."
Some women are also afraid police will not believe them.
Nor are they confident the courts will treat their case properly or properly punish the abuser, Walker said.
"Some women who are being abused -- and this is where it gets complex -- genuinely love the abuser."

Most abusive relationships did not begin that way, but start with love, Walker said.

Many women get help through the health care, social service or education systems, she said.
And many women tell no one.

"They minimize the danger," Walker said. "It's a survival instinct. They can't possibly imagine it.
"How could you live with someone thinking they're going to kill you?"

Abuse & Bullying in the School System

2007-10-08T17:30:00.000-07:00

Verbal abuse from teachers linked to risk of early sexual intercourse: study

By Andy Blatchford, THE CANADIAN PRESS. Canoe News.

MONTREAL - Children, especially girls, may be more likely to have sex before the age of 14 if they have been verbally abused by teachers, a new study suggests.

The study, which followed 312 children from kindergarten to age 23 in a rural Quebec town, also draws a link between peer rejection and girls engaging in early sexual intercourse.
"The girls seem to suffer more from these negative social experiences," said Mara Brendgen, the study's lead author.

"Girls, generally, are a bit more oriented towards social relationships and suffer more if these social relationships go sour."

Researchers found children at elementary school who were shouted at, harshly criticized or embarrassed by teachers in the classroom had an increased risk of early sexual intercourse.
These students often disengaged from normal expectations and many turned to generalized delinquency, said Brendgen, a psychology professor at the Universite du Quebec in Montreal.
"(Often) it's the same children who are delinquent, who take drugs who also engage in risky sexual behaviour," she said.

Sexually active girls under 14 are more at risk of having multiple partners, which increases their chance of contracting a sexually transmitted disease or becoming pregnant, she added.
The study, published last week in the October issue of the American Journal of Public Health, also suggests that students who were criticized or laughed at by peers developed a lower self esteem.

Brendgen said some girls used sexual intercourse to give their battered self esteem a lift.
"Basically, it's a similar experience that they have from the teachers as they have from peers, in the sense that they are really publicly humiliated and exposed," she said. Meanwhile, it's the disruptive students who were most frequently targeted, she added. "It's not random," Brendgen said. "These children have certain behavioural characteristics that may provoke either their peers or the teachers into negative behaviour."

Brendgen estimates between 10 and 15 per cent of children are regularly abused by teachers, while the same percentage are rejected by peers.

Neil Guilding, a co-ordinator at Head and Hands, a Montreal youth-assistance centre, said many adolescents complain about being singled out by their teachers. "There are definitely situations where certain youths are being picked on all the time," he said. Guilding believes rejection by teachers and classmates can increase the chance of drug use and criminal activity down the road. "I think school can be a very lonely and scary place," said Guilding, who runs the centre's drop-in program. Brendgen, meanwhile, said teacher training should highlight the potential consequences of negative behaviour toward students. "Teachers need to have a lot more training, but also a lot more support in dealing with problem children," she said. "On the side of the children, it is also important to maybe think about targeted interventions to help them develop positive relationships with their teachers and with their classmates."

The study, which began assessing children in 1986, was funded by grants from the federal and Quebec governments.

A Million Steps for Child Care

2007-10-06T19:18:00.000-07:00

October 3, 2007
BCGEU Communications
Press Release (pdf)

Vancouver Island woman launches A Million Steps for Child Care
run Campbell River to Victoria, October 9-16, 2007

Campbell River resident Shelagh Germyn is beginning an eight-day
marathon run from her hometown to Victoria to raise awareness of the
urgent need for a quality, affordable and accessible universal early
learning and child care system for BC's and Canada's children and
families.

Germyn will be starting her A Million Steps for Child Care journey in
Campbell River on Tuesday, October 9 and plans to arrive at the Victoria
Legislature Tuesday, October 16.

Communities along the A Million Steps for Child Care route are
organizing local events in support. Vancouver Islanders are invited to
join Germyn by biking, running, or walking with her along the way. Local
residents are also asked to create a banner decorated with the name of
their community and colourful children's footprints. The banners will be
displayed at the Legislature at the end of the run.

Earlier this year, Germyn saw a local town hall meeting on the effects
of provincial and federal child care funding cuts. She explains that she
was so touched by the stories of parents and their struggles to find and
afford child care that she decided to do this run to raise awareness
about the need for more public child care funding.

Germyn, married for 29 years and with two grown children, says "I love
children and I also love to run. So these are inspirations behind my A
Million Steps for Child Care run."

*************************
BCGEU - Child care - Let's Make it Happen campaign
Coalition of Child Care Advocates of BC - Million Steps Letter

Can MCFD Really Be Trusted to Investigate Itself?

2007-10-06T19:15:00.000-07:00

October 02, 2007

Simons Calls for Full Investigation Into Ministry Response To Reports of Sexual Abuse

BC NDP News Release

VICTORIA–Reports today that a young female prisoner says she was denied access to a lawyer has prompted New Democrat MLA Nicholas Simons to call for an independent review into the Ministry’s response to sex abuse allegations at the Burnaby Youth Custody Centre.
Simons said it appears the Ministry of Children and Family Development did not follow proper procedures when informed about allegations of improper sexual touching during medical assessments at the Youth Custody Centre.

"When such allegations arise, its standard procedure to have an assessment done by a child protection social worker - sometimes in conjunction with the RCMP," said Simons. "Instead, the Ministry banned the advocacy group which reported the allegations, and now it appears that prison officials may have blocked access to lawyers."

According to the group Justice For Girls, several young women disclosed at a group meeting in June they had experienced improper touching by a male doctor. Justice For Girls reported the allegation to the Ministry, but instead of launching a full assessment, the Ministry banned the organization from the Youth Custody Centre.

Simons has written the Ministry seeking answers regarding their response to the allegations. "Why didn't the proper assessment take place? And who is advocating for the young women? The Campbell government should follow proper procedures whenever there are allegations of sexual assault," said Simons.

Allegations of Sexual Misconduct towards Girls MCFD Youth Detention Centre

2007-10-06T19:04:00.000-07:00

Girls in custody say doctor assaulted them
By John Bermingham, The Province. Published: Monday, July 09, 2007

Burnaby Mounties are investigating allegations of sexual assault involving a girl inmate at the Burnaby Youth Custody Centre. RCMP Cpl. Jane Baptista said a third-party complaint has been made on behalf of the teen, who police have interviewed.

Vancouver-based Justice For Girls filed the complaint after three girls told them they were improperly touched on their breasts by a male doctor during psychiatric tests.

Asia Czapska of Justice for Girls said she was talking with the girls last month when a 17-year-old girl said a male doctor improperly touched her breasts. Then two more girls, both 15 or 16, described similar acts by the same doctor.

"They started to talk about how weird these breast exams were," said Czapska. "One of the girls described specifically how he basically groped her breasts."

The girls felt they couldn't refuse the breast exams, but they did refuse when the doctor offered to also perform Pap tests on them to check for cervical cancer.

Justice For Girls informed prison officials of the allegations.

The Ministry of Children and Family Development is also investigating.

NDP children's critic Maurine Karagianis wants to know why girls are undergoing breast exams and being offered Pap tests during psychiatric assessments.

"I don't understand what the policy could possibly be that would require girls to undergo those kinds of examinations when receiving a psychiatric examination," said Karagianis.
The doctor initially withdrew his services at the Inpatient Assessment Unit, but is now back working.

"During the period of time the investigation is ongoing, he has voluntarily chosen not to do examinations on young women till the thing is resolved," said Barry Lynden, executive director of youth custody services.

"It's nothing that we're overly concerned about. If we were, we would have taken much more severe and drastic steps," he said.

Lynden said a breast examination is part of a routine medical exam, which is in turn part of the psychiatric assessment. A female nurse is supposed to be present during those tests.

"We're dealing with extremely vulnerable children here, and many of these children have never had physical examinations," he said.
"We want to ensure the safety of the kids."

Lynden said Justice For Girls filed the complaint, not the girl, who is still in custody.
"The child is not complaining," he said. "The child has no issue whatsoever, at this point."
Lynden said he hasn't received complaints from any others.

jbermingham@png.canwest.com

More MCFD Friends & Insiders Hopping on the Gravy Train

2007-09-27T13:37:00.000-07:00

A Cook in the kitchen
Public Eye Online, Sean Holman, September 27, 2007

Prior to becoming the ministry of children and family development's top bureaucrat, Lesley du Toit was an associate with the International Institute for Child Rights and Development. She also co-wrote a chapter in the Handbook for Working with Children and Youth with the institute's executive director Philip Cook - having previously worked with him to develop a system in South Africa to "maximize the care of young people in communities." And now it looks like Dr. Cook and Ms. du Toit are together again. According to the institute's 2006-07 annual report, its been handed a $408,000, four-year project as part of the ministry of children and family development's transformation process.

The report states, as part of that project, Dr. Cook "has been seconded by the British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development for 1/3 of his time to support a 4 year province wide transformation process led by" Ms. du Toit. That support work, in part, includes "co-chairing the Transformation Task Team, leading a province wide assessment of What’s Working for Children and Families, and assisting with a regional Indigenous service delivery plan in North East British Columbia." The following is a complete copy of the relevant section of that report.
***
BC Ministry for Child and Family Development Transformation Task TeamFunders: BC Ministry for Child and Family DevelopmentLength of Project: 2006-2010Funds secured: $102,000/yearPartners: Deputy Minister, Regional Authorities IICRD Executive Director Philip Cook has been seconded by the British Columbia Ministry of Children and Family Development for 1/3 of his time to support a 4 year province wide transformation process led by Deputy Minister, Lesley duToit. Philip Cook will be co-chairing the Transformation Task Team, leading a province wide assessment of What’s Working for Children and Families, and assisting with a regional Indigenous service delivery plan in North East British Columbia. In the Northeast region of British Columbia, the Ministry of Children and Family Development is moving forward with a regionalization plan to ensure that families and communities are actively engaged in influencing the government services they receive. IICRD has been invited to implement the Triple “A” participatory action research process with Treaty Eight First Nations, Urban Aboriginal Agencies, and Metis Organizations, working in 14 North Eastern communities. Over the next year, the team will work closely with youth, Elders, and children’s care providers in these communities to provide training and develop services that build on existing cultural strengths to meet the needs of children and their families.

Posted by Sean Holman at 02:09 PMPermanent link Comments: (4)

Back in the Saddle ...

2007-06-20T09:12:00.000-07:00

After a couple of years off, we're back for some more commentary on social justice issues impacting children, youth and families, something very much needed as things have only gotten worse and worse provincially and federally. Why do our so-called "leaders" not get it, all children & youth are precious gifts and resources to our communities and society, in the present and future? We must treat them much better than we are and this blog is one step in creating a dialogue to challenge others to step up and help our children succeed.

Infant Mortality in BC

2005-07-07T07:43:00.000-07:00

Infant Sleep Deaths
CKNW, (July 06, 2005).

VICTORIA(CKNW/AM980) - Some advice to parents
of infants from the BC Coroners Service today: Don't sleep
with your babies and make sure they sleep on their backs.

Coroner Colin Harris has just issued a report that found
unsafe sleep practices were linked to the deaths of 25
babies in BC during an 18 month period beginning in
January 2003.

Harris says infants should not sleep on soft surfaces or
with their parents and they should be supine rather than
prone.

"So that they're not find themselves in a situation where
they're rebreathing their own carbon dioxide and with
infants what you have to remember is that when they're
very small and they have very little neck control in their
muscles with their head and if they find themselves in a
compromised position they're not always able to free their
airway."

And Harris says cribs should be free of bumpers, quilts
and comforters.
**************************************************

Many sleep-related infant deaths preventable
CBC News, (July 6 2005).

A new report by the B.C. Coroner's office says putting babies
to sleep on adult beds and couches is the leading cause of
infant sleep-related death in this province.

Coroner's Child Safety Bulletin (78 MB .pdf)

Coroner Colin Harris, who headed the study into the deaths
of 47 babies, says more than 40 per cent of the sleep-related
deaths were cases where the infants were not sleeping in cribs.

Coroner's Infant Death report (153 MB .pdf)

Harris says more education about safe sleeping practices is
needed reduce the number of unnecessary infant deaths in
B.C. The study was carried out between January 2003 and
June 2004.
********************************************************

Child and Youth Mental Health Saved from the Axe right now

2005-06-30T11:26:00.000-07:00

Dix Flip-Flop
CKNW, (June 29 2005).

VICTORIA(CKNW/AM980) - The NDP is crowing
over a Liberal government flip-flop.

Two days ago, New Democrat critic Adrian Dix raised
concerns about a planned transfer of Child and Youth
Mental Health Services from the Children and Families
Ministry to the Health Ministry.

Today, Health Minister George Abbott cancelled the move.

"I think it shows that the premier was being extremely
cavalier in making a very important decision about mental
health services in the government that he hadn't thought
the decision through and he caused as a result a lot of
anxiety for people who depend on those services."

Dix says the government should apologize for causing
that unnecessary anxiety.
***************************************************
Liberal Flip Flop on Mental Health Services for
Children Demonstrates Need for Consultation.
June 29, 2005 - NDP

VANCOUVER – After pressure from the Opposition and
community stakeholders, the Premier and the Minister of
Health have reversed their decision to move Child and
Youth Mental Health services from the Ministry of Children
and Family Development to the Ministry of Health, said
NDP Children and Family Development critic and MLA
for Vancouver-Kingsway Adrian Dix today.

“The Premier’s plan contradicted the recommendations
of the Gove Report that insisted all child welfare services
operate under a single body to minimize the risk of children
and youth slipping through the system,” said Dix. “The
government made the initial decision without consulting
the public or those affected by the changes. They made
sweeping changes behind closed doors, without discussing
it with experts and stakeholders in the field.

“Yesterday, the Minister of Health was cavalier in his
defense of the decision and the Minister of Children and
Family Development was nowhere to be found. Today,
the Campbell government flip flopped. Clearly, this
decision was rushed and the result of a flawed process.

“The Campbell government continues to bring uncertainty
and disruption into the children’s ministry. To date, they
have failed to maintain stability in the ministry and today’s
reversal shows that they still don’t get it.

“Children, youth and their families receiving support need
consistency from government. If Gordon Campbell and
his ministers had consulted stakeholders, they would
have heard that message loud and clear.

“I hope the government has learned an important lesson
today. The new NDP Opposition will work with stakeholders
to hold the government to account and represent the interests
of British Columbians.”
********************************************************
Gov't Flips on Child Mental Health Services
Jun, 29 2005 - 11:00 AM

VICTORIA(CKNWAM980) - Mental health services
for children and youth will be kept with the Ministry of
Children and Families, after all.

The BC Government yesterday announced that division
would be moved to the Ministry of Health, but today,
Health Minister George Abbott announced an "about-face",
saying the services will now be kept with the original
ministry.

"Government has heard from several stakeholders and
stakeholder groups that were concerned with the transfer.
Senior officials in government have discussed this matter
with these stakeholders and with other interested parties."

The NDP had complained the change would go against
the recommendations of the Gove Inquiry, which included
the advice to keep all services for children and youth with
the same Ministry. Just yesterday, Abbott defended the
move, saying it would increase efficiency.
*************************************************
NEW CROWN TO DELIVER, IMPROVE COMMUNITY
LIVING SERVICES.
Ministry of Children & Family Press Release

VICTORIA – On July 1, Community Living British Columbia
will begin delivering all provincial services to British Columbians
with developmental disabilities and working toward better meet-
ing their individual needs.

Hagen states: “Community Living BC is ready to deliver stable,
quality services now, through the same staff and locations as in
the past. Over time, it will implement a new service-delivery model
that provides more services and delivery options, better supporting
the hopes and dreams of individuals with developmental disabilities
and their families.”
************************************************************
Hmm, I'd like to hear Mr. Hagen tell the public about the readiness
of CLBC to take this task on. What's the infrastructure, or leader-
ship of CLBC looking like as in the services to THE most vulnerable
people change in such a drastic way. See some of my former posts
for links to some of the many readiness reports done leading up to
this.

You can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't
fool all of the people all of the time, Mr. Hagen and those behind this
privatization. By no means is Hagen the mastermind behind this
scheme, he's just the mouthpiece, that's pretty clear, since all the
plans keep rolling with each change of minister. I wonder though
if they give MLA's and ministers receive education and training
in the values of ministerial responsibility to the public interest.
I'd put money on it that Gordon Campbell wouldn't waste time,
nor money on a thing like that. Some of his new MLA's might
actually get some ideas of their own about their responsibilities,
obligations and accountability to the public.

And, surprise, surprise, no press releases at all about the child and
youth mental health decisions from the government website. You'd
think with the well-paid flotilla of communications people in the
BC government they'd be able to get the news out to the people who
pay their salaries.

Youth crime court cases down

2005-06-28T20:29:00.000-07:00

OTTAWA (CP) - The number of youth crime cases
coming to court fell dramatically last year in the first
year under the new Youth Criminal Justice Act.

Statistics Canada says the annual case load declined
by the largest annual amount in more than 10 years.

Judges heard 70,465 cases in the 2003-2004 fiscal year,
down 17 per cent from the previous year.

It was the single largest annual decline since 1991-1992,
the first year national figures were available.

The case load has been falling gradually, mainly because
of a steady drop in cases involving property crimes.

The new youth justice act emphasizes keeping less
serious cases out of court, dealing with them less formally
and telling youths of the consequences of their crimes.
****************************************************
While I certainly agree that youth should be given access
to diversion and rehabilitative and supportive programming,
what isn't part of this article is the fact that a good portion
of youth, including high-risk offenders, have learnt that
the YCJA has no teeth. Kids know that they won't get
charged, or breached, that any orders they might actually
receive aren't going to be enforce. They are learning that
frankly there are few consequences for their criminal and
often risky behaviour.

There has always been this small percentage of criminally
involved youth that have acted recklessly in that way, especially
youth with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and other cognitive/intellectual
deficits, however I've definitely observed a real awareness
on the parts of youth to create more mayhem, with the
knowledge there will be few repercussions. I've also
observed that youth probation, Crown counsel and youth
court judges are not recommending as serious consequences,
or enforcing the orders in place. While I will always view
myself as an advocate and voice for children and youth,
I also have the capacity to understand that some youth
are a danger to themselves, others and society and must
be reined in, stabilized and separated from peers who influence
their behaviour in the community. Sometimes that can only be
done during a brief stay in jail. Sounds harsh, it is. But some
of these youth wouldn't blink twice about doing what they
want in the moment. Right and wrong, caring about others is
abstract for some youth. There is only the present moment
and need, or desire.

These YCJA changes were implemented, in part, as a result of
the fact that Canada had an even higher youth incarceration
rate than our jail happy neighbours, America. While I don't
agree that this is the way to go, especially for those with invisible
disabilities (the saying goes FAS boys get locked up, the girls get
knocked up). The reality is that there is a larger generation of
youth who are growing up to have no fear, or respect for the
safety of themselves, or others, nor respect for the law.

Of course a cynical person might also think that this policy and
practice shift might also reduce the overhead that goes into
funding the youth criminal justice system and all of its attendant
community sector programs, such as probation schools, forensic
and/or mental health services and residential resources and
one to one workers (intensive supervision and support workers
[ISSP].

Privatization and Ministry shifting of Child & Youth Mental Health

2005-06-28T17:59:00.000-07:00

Child Mental Health
CKNW, (June 28 2005).

VICTORIA(CKNW/AM980) - Community groups
that provide services to children across BC are concerned
but BC's Health Minister says his ministry's take-over
of child mental health services will be a good thing.

Craig Meredith with the Federation of Child and Family
Services says other provinces have been following BC's
example of combining child welfare services into a
single ministry as recommended in the Gove Report
nearly a decade ago now he says the government is
moving backward with no consultation.

"It was quite a shock to ministry staff and service
providers."

But Health Minister George Abbott says his ministry
will now offer all mental health services, increasing
efficiency...

"We believe it's gonna be a success and I'm looking
forward to seeing some great results from this."

As for who was consulted, "I can't, I can't speak to
that, I'll have to check into that."
***********************************************
I bet once he does check around that he will find many
people are happy child & youth mental health is going
over the health authority. No-one in their right minds
would want to be part of the Ministry of Children and
Family Development, what with the funding cuts,
organizational chaos and toxic work environment.
There is just no leadership to help the integrated model
really work in this province. It really is a big loss for
child & youth mental health to go, there will be an
increase in service gaps and other issues no doubt.

It's called privatization my friends and foes. MCFD is
rapidly divesting itself of anything to do with child welfare.
By the end of this week Community Living BC (a nightmare
in the making for those it purports to serve and those who
will be doing the serving), is supposed to be up & running.
Hmmm, missed the public, open announcement on that one
anywhere in the media, or even on the government website.

The continuing silence from the supposed advocates,
such as the BCACL, BC Coalition of People with Dis-
abilities, and Family Net etc. speaks volumes about
what we can expect from these organizations in terms
of real advocacy and voice for those affected by this
privatization. Still no news on the government website
either. If this CLBC plan is such a great thing, why aren't
they tripping over themselves to announce the
much waited for shift to community governance.
What are they afraid of and what are they hiding?
***********************************************

Privatization takes new form

NEWS, VIEWS & ATTITUDE

By Bill Tieleman, (June 28, 2005). 24 Hours.ca.

Maximus, the controversial U.S. corporation that has
already taken over administration of B.C.'s Medical
Service Plan despite privacy objections, is now poised
to take over the BC Nurseline, the province's telephone
healthcare service, 24 Hours has learned.

The BC Nurseline employs 100 registered nurses and
handles about 900 calls a day.

"I don't know what the motivation is but it seems
unnecessary to sell out the sanctity of Canadian medical
information," BCCLA president Jason Gratl said in an
interview. "The obvious alternatives are to hire a Canadian
company or not privatize and lower costs internally."

"We don't see the steps taken by the B.C. government
as adequate to prevent the U.S. government from having
access to confidential information," he said.
*************************************************
Another major issue in this is the absolutely crappy job
that "MSP" now does in responding to citizens inquiring
about ANYTHING to do with accessing health care.
I know I've e-mailed, or tried to contact them and have
family members who have mailed in very important
documents never to hear anything from this incompetent
monolith.

Manufacturing Children's Lives and Deaths

2005-06-21T22:04:00.000-07:00

Coroner Adopts New Child Death Review Process
CKNW, (June 21, 2005).

VANCOUVER(CKNWAM980) - The BC Coroner's Service
is adopting a new process for reviewing deaths of children,
after the investigation into the death of 2-year-old Chassidy
Whitford.

Chassidy was accidentally smothered by her father while
he was drunk, and he was later convicted of criminal
negligence causing death.

Assistant Deputy Chief Coroner Lisa Lapointe says Chassidy's
family, members of her native band and other community
representatives took part in the review, "and that resulted
in some recommendations to the coroner which the coroner
adopted, and it allowed everybody to be heard and to have
some control over the outcome, some sense that their issues
were considered and were considered to be important."

The recommendations include better training for hospital staff
and police when it comes to identifying and assessing child
abuse and better information sharing among community
agencies.
******************************************************
Ministry of Children and Family Development.
Review Findings Released in Death of Child: Chronology

Summary of the Director's Case Review Into the Death of CW.
(October 22, 2003).
************************************************************************
CBC, (February, 2003). Saving the Native Children.
News in Review.
****************************************************
Foster parent says Sto:lo system is flawed
By Kevin Gillies,(December 09, 2003). Abbotsford Times.

The Sto:lo child welfare program Xyolhemeyhl has failed
children in several instances, including the case of Chassidy
Whitford, according to a woman who has fostered several
First Nations kids for the program.

Xyolhemeyhl [pronounced heoth-meeth] has come under public
scrutiny since two-year-old Chassidy was discovered dead on
the Lakahahmen reserve Sept. 21.]
*********************************************************
Critical report ignored
By Lisa Morry, (December 09, 2003). Chilliwack Times.

In particular, the report, by CS/RESORS Consulting, Ltd., Elizabeth M.
Robinson, Inc. and Gordon Blackwell, states that 73.2 per cent of
child protection and guardianship files reviewed did not have a plan
of care on file. Of those files, 83 per cent did not have a safety
assessment on file and 83 per cent also did not have a risk assess-
ment on file.

"While the number of files overall is small (41), the findings have
particular strength because of their uniformity. That is, the rate
of sheer absence of records or of lack of currency of those records
that exist is very high indeed; or, put another way, there is a very
low proportion of activities for which information is current or even
present at all," the report states.
**************************************************
Commentary:

It's outrageous that the Liberals think they can water down
and cover up the reality that Chassidy Whitford, a child who
was barely two, lost her life due to the failure of the child
welfare system. As reported by CKNW and no-where to be
found on the government website, the BC coroner's autopsy
report suggests more training for police and hospital staff,
and increased information sharing are the answers to how
this child did not receive the protection and intervention
she deserved from the child welfare authorities, her family,
community and other professionals. If people are taking
the "hands off" turning a blind eye approach to protecting
children, then they also get the blame and the accountability
for children being hurt.

Hmm, no mention of the "notable gaps in the investigation
process," some of which included staff who investigated did
not recognize the nature of the risk to the child. The investi-
gator did not seek consultation, or receive it, the proper case
process and documentation was not performed and people
who may have been important to interview were not sought
out about the circumstances and safety
of the child"
(MCFD, Summary of the Director's Case Review).

Further audits of the agency found issues of accountability
and documentation, including a high majority of children's files
with no plans of care. Other conditions that impacted practice
included the complexity of the work and "the appalling social
conditions and an overwhelming caseload," (CBC, February,
2003).

Now, to be clear, this isn't an attack on Xyolhemeyhl, who
I'm sure were doing the best they could with the human and
other resources available. I'm afraid that those delegated to
provide protection to children can't play things loosy-goosy.
There are policy and practice standards for a reason. And to
be fair, BC has its share of good ones.

Leaders within Aboriginal agencies and others must help
train staff in learning policy, model and teach good practice
themselves and encourage staff to be involved in training.
All of this will assist workers in developing better skills, know-
ledge and assess the safety of children and the needs of them
and their families more accurately.

Another key to child welfare organizations and improved practice
is that there must be appropriate staffing levels. I fully believe
that those working strictly with Aboriginal children and families
must have lower caseloads. The complexity and intensity of the
problems facing First Nations families and communities cannot be
underestimated. The rich relationships and work that can be
created with families cannot occur when workloads, or caseloads,
are too high. An organization cannot develop an experienced,
competent work force in child protection if they keep burning
staff out. There is no social worker tree. They're not as expendable
as I've been led to think government believes. Sometimes I wonder
if the Liberals also think the populations being served in child
protection are expendable too?

The messy part of child protection is that sometimes in spite of the
best interventions tragedies happen. Child protection isn't an exact
science and the organizations are serving higher-risk individuals and
families. But the bottom line is that ethical, competent and knowledge-
able leadership and supervision is what is needed in any child welfare
organization. Sadly, this appears to be lacking in many. The only way
things are going to change, or improve, is if the Liberals realize that the
more fiscal constraint Treasury Board imposes the less focus is given
to the safety and well-being of children and youth.

I'm urging that there be no more cuts to the Ministry of Children
and Family Development. I have a hunch they are happening, even
separate from the impending devolution of CLBC and the money
that goes with them. The children's bodies are stacking up
and even in their deaths children's realities are being manufactured
by the very state that is responsible for their well-being.

United Nations, (2 September 1990).
Convention on the Rights of the Child

Article 3 1. In all actions concerning children, whether under-
taken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of
law, administrative authorities or legislative bodies, the best
interests of the child shall be a primary consideration.

2. States Parties undertake to ensure the child such protection
and care as is necessary for his or her well-being, taking into
account the rights and duties of his or her parents, legal guard-
ians, or other individuals legally responsible for him or her, and,
to this end, shall take all appropriate legislative and adminis-
trative measures.

The Privatization of Community Living Services

2005-06-20T20:09:00.000-07:00

Parents pan transfer of disabilities services:
'People not aware of what's happening, the
implications,' mother of autistic son says

Brad Badelt, (June 18, 2005). Vancouver Sun,
p. B1 & 4.

An independent authority will take over responsi-
bility for providing disability services across BC
from the provincial government in early July, but
parents of disabled children say they have been
left in the dark about the changes.

The transfer of services to Community Living BC
(CLBC), a Crown agency with government-appoint-
ed directors, marks a major step in the govern-
ment's long-standing plan to decentralize the
Ministry of Children and Family Development.

CLBC chair Lois Hollstedt said the official hand-off
is expected July 1st. "There is a letter that will be
going out to all the people we serve," Hollstedt
said. "To make certain people are fully aware of
the change."

But Dawn Steele, who has a 12-year-old son with
autism, said she is frustrated by the lack of
consultation. "The first issue, in my eyes, is this
is all going to happen July 1 and there's been no
public announcement, or discussion," Steele said.
"People are not aware of what's happening and
the implications."

Barb Laird's daughter has Down Syndrome, but
she said she has not received any formal notifi-
cation about the changes. "I've heard it's happen-
ing," said Laird, who receives an electronic news-
letter from CLBC every month. But she didn't
know it was going to be July 1, and she is worried
about how it will work.

(Continued: New agency will control $600 million
in funding)

The transition will move $600 million in funding -
provided to about 15,000 individuals and families
across the province - to the authority of CLBC.

"The great motivations to move outside of govern-
ment are more flexibility, more independence from
government and more ability to really put the person
to be served in the centre, rather than the system,"
Hollstedt said Friday.

The province has been planning to overhaul the ministry
since early 2002, but has been delayed several times,
most notably with the resignation of former restructuring
coordinator Peter Wall (should be Doug) amid allegations
of scandal in early 2004.

One change expected within the next two years is indivi-
dual funding, which Hollstedt said would allow individuals
or families to shop for their own services rather than rely
strictly on those provided by government.

The new funding mechanism, which will be voluntary,
would also make it easier for disabled people to move from
one region to another, Hollstedt. "One of the biggest com-
plaints about the current system is you can't take your
money across regional boundaries. You can't even take it
from city to city," she said.

But Steele is worried about whether CLBC - formed on an
interim basis in late 2002 - has enough experience to
provide such widespread services.

"They're saying they're going to increasingly rely on comm-
unities and families to provide the needed support," Steele
said. "That basically assumes that there is capacity in the
community and among families to do more than they're
doing now. It's an insult."

Laird, who likes the idea of being able to choose services for
her daughter, said she is concerned about where the money
will come from, particularly with a growing population of
disabled adults.

"I'm hopeful with CLBC I'm going to have more of a say as
to what my daughter's going to have [for services]," Laird
said, "because what's out there [right now] isn't necessarily
what I want for her."

***************************************************
Commentary:

The bottom line that people really don't want to hear is
that this entire process to devolve Community Living
Services is tarnished and flawed due to the fiscally driven
motivations and influence of Doug Walls. Despite the input
of many, one has only to read the reports from the initial
phases of the plan to realize that anything that Mr. Walls
was part of must be suspect.

The PriceWaterhouseCooper audit is really clear in stating
that Mr. Walls was able to insinuate himself into the Interim
Authority and the Community Living Transition Steering
Committee, as the driving force and chief architect to the
plan that has seen many leaders come and go, in efforts to
meet dangerous, poorly conceived deadlines and plans.
Mr. Walls was clearly reported to have

Okay, strike 1, Ms. Hollstedt. The fact that the parents of
those receiving supports and services through MCFD have
not even been informed about the impending "devolution"
of the services they are no doubt quite in need of for their
children, speaks volumes about who will really be at the
"centre" of this service delivery system.

I've been scouring the various organizations devoted and
funded(some with untendered government and foundation
contracts) by the BC government for any mention, update,
sneak peak at the news of the rapidly approaching devolution
and have found not a bit of news. This really speaks to the
climate of communication, collaboration and oversight that
can be expected of an organization that has political appointees
on it's Board of Directors and the people they will appoint to
sit on the regional micro-boards.

The Community Living BC Business Plan 2005 was
only just released in June. Considering the subtitle “Building
the Foundation for the Future” it seems a little late to release
this document only two weeks before the most significant
and risky change and service re-organization in the area of
developmentally disabled and special needs children, youth
and adults in a decade.

Having conducted a lot of research over the last while about
the history, background and process for the devolution of
CLS to CLBC, I’ve discovered that there are no less than at
least eight (8) consultation reports about the readiness of
CLBC to devolve (see below for references). Most point out
significant problems related to funding for devolution and
infrastructure development, organizational capacity, potential
for ongoing funding problems and concerns about possible
cuts to service in communities as a result of expected budget
shortfalls, and readiness and stability of leadership.
*****************************************************
References

Advocate for Service Quality

The BC Coalition of People with Disabilities

BC FamilyNet, (June 18, 2005). Letter to Premier Campbell.

BC Government and Employee Union, (May 30, 2005).
Memorandum of Agreement reached on employees
transferring from government to Community Living
B.C.

Boyd, B., (May, 2004). Devolution of Services to Community
Living BC:Updated Assessment of Readiness.

CBC News, (May 12 2004). Bad management, but no fraud in Walls
affair: report.

CBC News, (2004, January 23). Hogg resigns over audit.

CBC News (2004, January 19). RCMP recommended charges in
car dealership case.

CBC News, (2004 May 12). Report on Doug Walls due Wednesday.
CBC News, (2004, Mar. 4). Shake-up at Community Living B.C.

Ministry of Children & Family Development.
Chronology of Events:Transition to Community
Governance for Community Living Services.

BC Association for Community Living.

Community Living Coalition

Community Living Society

Milowsky, Fred, (September 30, 2004). An Operational
Examination of the Community Living Service Delivery
Model.

Minister of Finance, (May 6, 2004). Auditor’s Investigation
of CareNet Technology Society and the Provincial
Government's Dealing with Douglas F. Walls.

Sage Group Management Consultants, (Sept. 24, 2003).
New Governance - Some Considerations .

Homeless Plan Passed, Show Us the Money

2005-06-16T14:36:00.000-07:00

Vancouver homeless plan gets green light
CBC News, (Jun 15 2005).

VANCOUVER – Vancouver city council has given its
unanimous approval to a Homeless Action Plan, which
recommends the construction of 8,000 social housing
units over the next 10 years.
****
Jill Davidson, the city's homeless policy co-ordinator,
says support for the initiative is widespread throughout
the community – providing a consensus to move forward.
"We've had Tourism Vancouver, the business community,
the Board of Trade come to us and say they are in support
of this plan," she says.
***
There's no official estimate of how much the Homeless
Action Plan will cost the city. But each new suite carries
a price tag of $130,000.

Justice for children abused in care?

2005-06-13T18:44:00.000-07:00

Sex abuse settlement
CKNW, (June 13, 2005).

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - The victims of a
former foster parent who sexually assaulted children
in his care now have the power to sue the BC government
for damages.

A BC Supreme Court judge has approved a settlement
stemming from a 2001 class-action lawsuit involving
up to 30 victims of convicted sex offender Alan Walter
Winter. Between 1959 and 1986, the one-time Surrey
school trustee abused children as young as 11 years
old in Surrey and Langley.

Terms of the settlement have not been released, but
over the next five months, his victims can start filing
individual claims.

Winter --who's now in his 60's-- was deported to
Britain after serving one-third of his 16-year sentence.

He was designated a dangerous offender when he was
convicted in 1987.

MCFD News

2005-06-11T13:21:00.000-07:00

Child Beater
CKNW, (Jun, 11 2005).

VANCOUVER(CKNW/AM980) - Vancouver Police have a
woman in custody, accused of attacking her own daughter yesterday.
Police say the woman was on a supervised visit with her 4-year-old
girl at the Ministry of Children and Families office on Kingsway.
She was left alone briefly but that was all the time needed to try to
smother the little girl.Staff managed to stop her and the woman was
arrested.The little girl is in stable condition.
***************************************************
Girl allegedly attacked by mother
The Province, (Sunday, June 12, 2005), p. A10.

A young mother is in custody after allegedly trying to smother
her four-year old daughter during a supervised visit at a govern-
ment office on Friday.

Vancouver police say the incident took place in the 3600-block
Kingsway Road at a Ministry of Children and Family Develop-
ment office.

During the visit, the mother was alone with her daughter and
tried to smother the little girl, say police.

Jeremy Berland, assistant deputy minister, said the assault
was a complete surprise to staff and it remains unclear how it
happened. He said at one point, the person supervising the
visit was knocked down while trying to intervene. Two other
staff members who heard the commotion also rushed to stop
the assault, said Berland.

"It's deeply disturning to us," said Berland. "We're very
concerned about the condition of the child."

The little girl was in stable condition yesterday.

Berland said he could not comment on whether the mother
has a history of violence, or what initially led the ministry
to take custody of the child.

Supervised visits are ordered by the court to ensure that
a child in the custody of the ministry is able to have contact
with it's parents.

"We supervise visits when there's a concern about something
a parent might say, or do, but in this circumstance, there was
no indication of violence," Berland said.

No charges have been laid.
******************************************************
Working group for family justice strays away from legal aid dispute
CKNW, (Jun, 10 2005).

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - A new report out tackles reform
to B.C.'s family justice system, but don't look for any action on legal
aid funding.The report recommends a move away from an adversarial
approach, and more towards mediation.

Its findings were put together by a working group made up of govern-
ment, lawyers, and judges. Its chair -- Jerry McHale - says it deals with
system changes.While the report aims to make a system that is more
accessible, it does not tackle government cuts to legal aid.
Feedback is now being sought on the report's recommendations.

Children's Rights and Agendas

2005-06-07T18:55:00.000-07:00

CHILDREN'S 'C8': Children Meet to Place their
Issues on the G8 Agenda

Date: 3-5 July 2005
Location: Dunblane, Scotland

UNICEF Adolescent Development and Participation Unit,
Programme Division, HQ and the UK Committee is
organising a 'C8' children's summit due to take place
just before the G8 meeting of leaders, from 3rd to 5th
July 2005 in Scotland, United Kingdom. Young people
from eight of the world's least developed countries -
Bhutan, Cambodia, Moldova, Yemen, Republic of Guinea,
Sierra Leone, Bolivia and Lesotho will be joining young
people from G8 countries, Russia, France, Italy, Germany
and the UK to debate, discuss and firmly place their
issues on the agenda of the G8 leaders.

As part of C8, UNICEF is holding a webchat for young
people in association with UNICEF's Voices of Youth
Website. This webchat started on 1 June 2005 and will
last for one month. This is a chance for young people
from across the globe to debate issues which they think
the G8 leaders should address.

Their views will form part of a report which will be given
to the G8 leaders.

For more information, contact:
Nina O'Farrell, C8 Project Manager
Tel: + 44 20 7312 7667;Fax: + 44 20 7405 2332
Email: ninao@unicef.org.uk
Website: http://www.c8forum.org

Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=5665

To access the webchat.
*****************************************************
SEXUAL EXPLOITATION:
US Law Fails to Protect American Victims


[NEW YORK, 27 April 2005] - ECPAT-USA just released
an investigative report, "Who Is There to Help Us?
How the System Fails Sexually Exploited Girls in
the US," to call attention to the disparity in treat-
ment between American and foreign girls who are
trafficked for sexual exploitation. This report is
a major stepping-stone, which serves as an "Amber
Alert" as it brings attention and calls for reform,
and services to over 300,000 American children,
whose lives are at risk of commercial sexual
exploitation.

While in theory the Trafficking Victims Protection
Act of 2000 (TVPA), that the US Congress enacted,
provides protection for American girls who are
coerced into sexual exploitation, the report
explains that in practice the TVPA falls short.
American girls are practically ignored while
foreign girls receive federal assistance.

According to the report, the difficulty in
child trafficking and exploitation cases is
the invisible nature of the crime and lack of
hard data. The report, which was primarily based
on personal interviews, provides a regional
perspective in its coverage of four American
cities: New York, Atlanta, Minneapolis,and
San Francisco.

The report strives to make readers aware that
although these children are technically breaking
the law because of prostitution, they are victims
and should be treated as such. ECPAT-USA continues
through research, monitoring, and public awareness
to be the leading US organisation combating child
prostitution, pornography and trafficking for
sexual purposes.

For more information, contact:
Carol Smolenski, ECPAT USA
157 Montague Street, Brooklyn, NY 11201 US
Tel: + 1 718 935 9192; Fax: + 1 718 935 9173
Email: csmolenski@ecpatusa.org
Website: http://www.ecpatusa.org

Visit: http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=5679
**********************************************************
Commentary:

This report is a perfect example of what some of my other
posts have been getting at: the authorities are devoting
much time, energy and funds to fighting the international
and  global sex trade, while ignoring the sexual abuse, 
violence and exploitation that is happening to the
children on our very own streets of our city, province
and country. There is very little funding that goes toward
supports, resources, or interventions for children at a local
level. It is hypocritical, ignorant and short-sighted to be
so wilfully blind to our own problems and the rights of
our children.

Adoption Issues in BC

2005-06-06T18:23:00.000-07:00

To Rescue a Child from Foster Care, Adopt:
Why go overseas to adopt? The risks in BC
are overblown.
Mary Glasgow , (June 3, 2005). The Tyee.

Excerpt:

For the last five years, the Ministry of Child and Family
Services has been focusing on adoption, but with little
success. The list of people wanting to adopt is long, and
the list of kids in foster care and on adoption lists even
longer. But in BC, there are few adoptions, and many
would-be-adoptive parents go out of the country.

In fact, last year, there were nearly a thousand kids
wanting for families in BC, but only 350 kids actually
got adopted. That means most kids languish in foster
care where “the outcomes are pretty dismal,” according
to Anne Clayton who’s the adoption manager at the
Ministry. “There’s a recognition that kids with a
permanent family, or at least a life-long commitment
to an adult seem to have a better outcome in their adult
years.”
*************************************************
Child Becomes 'real to you':
Foster Kids Online: Supporters argue photos
boost adoption rates
Elaine O'Connor, (June 5, 2005). The Province, p.A25.

B.C.'s adoption organizations are lobbying Victoria to
adopt a pioneering, online foster-child photo-listing
database that has proven successful in increasing the
number of successful adoptions in other provinces.

It's been more than two years since Alberta launched
a web-based gallery of foster children. The site, the
only one of it's kind in Canada, boosted adoptions
among 4,700 foster kids by 30% between it's launch
in February 2003 and October 2004.

Anne Carin, clinical director of CHOICES, a B.C.
private adoption agency, says that as the success of
the Alberta Children's Services program becomes
increasingly apparent, advocates are frustrated by
the Ministry of Children and Family Development 's
delay in trying it.

"Alberta's seen enormous success. A picture's worth
a thousand words - people see a child and fall in love
with a face and they are willing to parent that child,"
Carin told The Province.

She said prospective parents are often intimidated by
thick assessment files detailing demands of special-
needs children with behavioural issues, abuse histories,
pre-natal exposure to drugs and alcohol, or medical
problems.

"With a photo, a child is real to you. Maybe they have
some learning challenges or special needs, but you see
it in context when you've got an actual child there," she
said.

Intimidated by a child's history, or fed up with a lengthy
process, B.C. parents often go stateside or look at inter-
national adoptions.

CHOICES has been putting pressure on the ministry to
take steps to implement the program here, but has met
with little success, since privacy laws governing adoption
in B.C. are stricter than those in Alberta.

"The ministry is not necessarily opposed to photo-listing,
but there is a lot of debate about the issue," said Jeremy
Berland, provincial director of adoption for the Ministry
of Children and Family Development. "We're concerned
about Internet predators and we're concerned about
privacy."

Berland said the ministry has studied the Alberta model,
but noted that legislative changes would be needed before
photo-listing could be done in B.C. He said the ministry
would also like to hold focus groups.

As it stands, the ministry's success rates are low. There
are 1,300 children in care in the average year, of whom
about 300 get adopted.

"We'd like to place more," Berland said." But before we
go down that path, we have to make sure that it's the
right thing to do."

On Alberta's website more than 100 children are up for
adoption, ranging from one to 13 years of age. Profiles
include photos, background information and in some
cases, videoclips. Families can make contact via e-mail
link.

In B.C., by contrast, the ministry posts written profiles
of children. All photos are withheld and the more than
230 children are listed under pseudonyms. Interested
families are directed to call a hotline for more inform-
ation about adopting. There are books of profiles and
pictures available to serious prospective parents in
ministry offices.

The Adoption Council of Canada maintains a photo
listing, but requires password issued after the council
obtains personal infomation and approves use of the
site.

eoconnor@png.canwest.com

***************************************************
Commentary:

Adoption is a topic close to my heart, as an adoptee I think
the issue is an important one, wherein much thought should
go into the ethics and implications of how to increase the
number of children who receive permanent families.
I don't agree with Jeremy Berland on much, but I think he
is right that we need to look at the issue of confidentiality
and privacy rights of children in care in a very serious way.
The general public may not be aware of this, but in general,
children and youth in care are discriminated against, stigma-
tized and subject to different standards than other young
people in society. Children in care are also much more likely
to be labelled and excluded from participation in school,
which often continues a life of rejection and failure to
provide the support a child needs to process and

The Adoptions department of the Ministry of Children and
Family Development have worked very hard over the last
few years to develop innovative plans and more awareness
about the many children in care who are waiting for perma-
nent, or "forever" families. They also deserve credit for
helping 300 children find permanent homes, because that
is meaningful for each of those children and families.

The discussion about adoption numbers is incomplete
without mentioning the situation of First Nations children.
There are many barriers to the adoption of Aboriginal children,
who are then relegated to foster care and it's problems, of
which there are many. I'm deeply concerned at the
number of Aboriginal children who are denied the right
to a permanent family for political and cultural reasons.

I also think it is awfully ironic that the Ministry is so concerned
about the privacy rights of these children in care, when it isn't
nearly so vigilant when it comes to the other rights of children
in the care of the state. For the most part, children in care live
and die in invisibility. Other posts in this blog go into detail
about the failure's of the Liberal government to publically
report on the death's of children in government care, or children
who die out of care, who are, or have been involved with the
Ministry. It is a fact that under the Liberals the street youth
population has increased because the Ministry is routinely failing
to protect and provide safety to youth as young as 14. This failure
is a neglection of legislated duty under the Child, Family and
Community Services Act and the UN Convention on the Rights
of the Child, of which Canada is a signatory.

Now, as I mentioned above, the issue of adoption is close to me,
because I'm representative of the kind of person who received a new
life, with a new family, opportunities, enduring connections and love.
All children deserve these things and more, and especially children
in care. They've often already gone through things that most adults
can't even imagine and they deserve to be safe, well taken care of,
integrated in a family and community and loved beyond belief.

The Rights of Children and Their Parents

2005-06-04T10:25:00.000-07:00

Ontario, families agree on return of severely
disabled children
CBC News, (June 3, 2005 ).

More than 100 families in Ontario are going to get
custody back of their severely disabled and autistic
children.

Lawyers for the families and the government reached
an agreement on Friday afternoon on how it will be done.

The parents have been forced to put their children in
the care of the province in order to provide them with
the costly specialized care they need. But they fought
that measure in court and won.

The province has since promised that whatever
agreement is reached on restoring custody it will not
restrict the parents' right to sue over how their families
have been treated.

The parents are suing but the province has decided to
appeal.

The government had promised to reunite the families,
but one of their lawyers said that was delayed because
there was no guarantee the children would keep the
services they are currently getting.

An aide to the minister of children's services says the
parents will start getting their custody rights restored
on Monday.

The Child Sex Trade Flourishes in Vancouver

2005-05-31T09:59:00.000-07:00

Grandview Pimps
May, 30 2005 - 4:10 PM

VANCOUVER(CKNW/AM980) - Vancouver Police
are again warning parents to better communicate
with their daughters --to keep them from getting
lured into the sex trade.

Constable Tim Fanning is responding to a warning
about First Nations girls as young as ten being recruited
by pimps outside Grandview Elementary.

"Parents are the first educators, so everybody has to
be involved. you know, it takes a community to raise a
child --whether you live in the West side of Vancouver,
the East side of Vancouver-- anywhere in the city--
we go back to what we just talked about which is you've
got to educate your kids."

Fanning says the girls most likely to fall into this trap
are those with low self-esteem and trouble at home.
*************************************************
Pimp problem at elementary school
May, 30 2005 - 3:00 PM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - It's not news to them.
That's how Vancouver Police are responding to a warning

Constable Tim Fanning says school liaison officers are
doing their best to protect vulnerable children.

"We have a program in place --that we work with the
schools. If they have any sort of problems, we are all
over it. If there's a specific incident, we investigate it.
Anytime we're given the information, we act on it."

The principal at Grandview Elementary says drug
traffickers and sex-trade recruiters are bold enough
to come right onto school property.

Fanning admits those pimps often trick the girls by
pretending to be their boyfriends.
***********************************************
Commentary:

Have the police lost their minds? This deplorable
attitude is why 67 women, mostly First Nations women,
have gone missing from Vancouver and an estimated
500 First Nations women are missing from across
Canada. Placing the onus onto parents to "communicate'
with their children" is absolute classist and racist crap.
You tell me if pimps were circling the privileged little
white children of the upper, or middle class on the Westside
whether this kind of classist, dangerous nonsense would
be the response from the police?

This "blame the victim" mentality is shocking and what
I want to know is how many of these recruiters and pimps
have been arrested, charged & convicted? Last I heard
sexual abuse and exploitation of children were indictable
offenses under the Criminal Code. Last I knew, children
deserved the right to go to school without having to run a
gauntlet of people waiting to sexually exploit them openly,
with police issuing bulletins, instead of doing their jobs to
stop these parasites.

I believe that school liaison officers probably are trying
to do the best they can, but the problems are embedded
in the Vancouver police department and society frankly.
First Nations girls and women across Canada are the
most marginalized citizens in this country. And this kind
of statement by the police contributes to the fact that
First Nations women are treated as though they are not
deserving of the protections other citizens receive and
in fact that they can be abused in any way from cradle
to grave. Many First Nations women don't even enjoy
the same rights as other women such as matrimonial
rights to property. When is this city and province going
to move away from our racist and classist treatment of
First Nations girls and women? Who is going to take
leadership on this issue and challenge the authorities,
such as the VPD, to provide the same rights to First
Nations girls and women in this city and province?

Something that also hasn't been mentioned in this
discussion is that other young women and men are
used as recruiters by adult pimps. This is done for
different reasons. Adults know that the watered down
Youth Criminal Justice Act and the authorities are not
particularly inclined to enforce too many breaches of
the Criminal Code, or even if they do, young people
will get away with that proverbial slap on the wrist,
in the guise of diversion. Youth know it too and some
of them are taking full advantage, because they know
there are no consequences to their behaviour. Adults
also use girls to befriend and recruit other girls into the
sex trade. They pick girls who themselves are vulnerable
and who may have been victimized, make them feel
special, give them drugs & alcohol, buy them some pretty
stuff (clothes, jewelry and other things) and then it's
pay back time. These girls in turn groom other girls
into the sex trade. And children are valued by pedophiles,
because they believe they are "clean" from disease and
they will pay more for that and unprotected rape (that is
what it is) of these children.

The fact that Vancouver has an open, thriving and
internationally known sex trade in children, filled with
First Nations girls, says to me that no-one in authority
cares enough to seriously tackle this problem. I have
worked with these girls and women, they need our love,
our care, our support to exit this shadow world of pain,
addiction, abuse and death. The younger they are when
they are introduced into the sex trade and the street life,
the earlier they are addicted, the earlier they develop
HIV, Hepatitis B & C, the earlier they die. They also have
babies, continuing the cycle of government care, broken
attachments, cognitive/intellectual issues and marginal-
ization through government intervention. Even if they
want to escape the life, the shame, humiliation and
guilt of the life they have been forced to lead leaves them
outside the margins of the mainstream, standing at the
window looking in, but lacking the skills and knowledge
how to be on the other side of the glass. We are the ones
who should feel shame, guilt and humiliation for the fact
that every day in Vancouver we are sitting by while children
are being raped and destroyed on our streets.
*****************************************************
Sex trade a 'reality' say experts
By Irwin Loy, 24 hours

Sex-trade recruitment is a reality at schools in all areas
of the city, says a support agency for sex-trade workers.
"Recruiting is happening in every school," said Kyla Kaun
of PEERS Vancouver. "We need to realize this is really
happening. Children are being targeted by predators to
get into sex work."

Kaun's comments come after the principal of East Van's
Grandview elementary last week told Vancouver city
council children in Grades 6 and 7 were constantly
targeted by sex-trade recruiters. Kaun says the average
age for entering prostitution is only 12 - and it's not just
restricted to lower-income neighbourhoods.

"Predators have absolutely no respect for social class.
It has nothing to do with poverty," Kaun said, adding
both parents and their kids need to get educated.

Former Child Care Worker get 4 and a half years for child abuse

2005-05-29T17:34:00.000-07:00

Cathy Matteau gets 5 years

Montreal Gazette, (May 26, 2005).

MONTREAL --A woman found guilty of severely
beating two infants in her care was sentenced on
Thursday to 4.5 years in jail on aggravated assault
charges.

Cathy Matteau, who's in her mid-20s, has been in
jail since Feb. 23 when she was found guilty of
aggravated assault on the two baby girls in 2003.
The infants were seven months and 10 months old,
respectively.

The first infant suffered a skull fracture, six crushed
vertebrae and symptoms of shaken baby syndrome.
The baby is likely to suffer permanent damage from
the assault at the at-home day care Matteau operated.

The second baby suffered two cranial fractures but
is likely to escape permanent damage.

Matteau's lawyer had argued that a maximum
sentence of three years for the former child-care
worker should be sufficient.

I think the public would be amazed and horrified
at how many people who have histories of abuse
and neglect of their own children can work in child care
with other people's children. I'm not saying this is
the case with the woman who has been convicted,
but it put me in mind of this. I have had many women
I have worked with tell me they were going to
school to become child care workers, many time before
they had resolved their own parenting issues in their
own family. Even though people have to usually at least
have a criminal record check, privacy laws would protect
child protection authorities from disclosing whether
someone has a history with child protection
involvement. It's also so scary how many people
are operating child care out of their homes with
no licenses, no oversight, or awareness of what
their backgrounds might be. As a parent, it is
so difficult to find affordable, high-quality child
care. I hope BC gets on board with the Feds
quick for the $5 billion child care funding, before we
head to the polls again. BC's kids and families need
and deserve a much, much better child care system
than we currently have.
**********************************************
Educational Reform Must Include Transparency
and Competition
By Nancy Salvato, (Wednesday, May 25, 2005).
Canada Free Press.

While it was somewhat surprising to read that preschoolers
are being suspended from school at alarming rates, that
teachers were having great difficulty managing these young
children did not catch me unawares. For all the media
coverage given to funding and accountability in the public
school system, in general very little attention is paid to
early childhood education. Private preschool centers are
forced to hire the least qualified to instruct those under
their care for the simple reason that they cannot afford
to properly compensate their teachers.

Head Start is one of the only early childhood programs
that requires education certification of instructors and
compensates at the level of other professional teachers.
Yet the one oasis where professional instructors are given
care of our youngest children has suffered from serious
financial abuse and irregularities. Lobbying from the
Head Start community has impeded "greater transparency
in the program" which would "enable the public and the
media to more closely examine the ways in which federal
Head Start funds are being spent" according to John
Boehner, Chairman of the Committee on Education and
the Workforce.

How many men are charged for giving HIV to Women?

2005-05-29T16:48:00.000-07:00

HIV-positive mom charged

HAMILTON (CP) - Police have arrested and
charged an HIV-positive mother who allegedly
failed to alert hospital staff to her condition
during childbirth so they could protect the
newborn from infection.

The mother faces one count each of failing to
provide the necessaries of life and criminal
negligence causing bodily harm. The baby has
tested positive for HIV.

Hospital staff who met with the pregnant woman
in early 2004 recommended the newborn baby
be given the drug AZT and secured an agreement
that the mother would not breastfeed her child,
police said.

But the accused stopped taking her medication
during the pregnancy and delivered the baby at a
different hospital, where she denied having had
any prenatal care. Police said that when she was
specifically asked about her medical history,
she denied her HIV status.

The mother was diagnosed as HIV positive prior
to the birth of her first child in 2003. She followed
medical advice to ensure the safe delivery of that
child, who does not have HIV.

Both children are in the care of the Catholic
Children's Aid Society.
*********************************************
Commentary:

I really don't know what these people are thinking.
It seems like a very poor decision to charge this
woman criminally. Perhaps they might think about
getting her some assistance and support instead.
What was the child welfare system doing while this
situation was going on? Was she offered high-quality
pre-natal care and support? Were she and the other
child being monitored and supported by the child
welfare system?

I have worked with women in these types of situations
and generally their families, community and society have
failed them in the first place. To me this condemnation,
punishment and criminalization will not help address the
marginalization, fear and pain this woman, and many
like her experience, at the hands of those in authority.
Yes, her children deserve intervention, safety and
protection, but this mother also deserves compassion,
support and care. This just smacks of sexism, classism
and continuing victimization by the state. I hope the
Crown sees this and acts in her best interests.

Child's Death Report Not Released

2005-05-26T19:57:00.000-07:00

NDP MLA Nicholas Simons says he filed his report
on Sherry Charlie in March 2004
By Nicholas Read, (May 27, 2005). Vancouver Sun, p. B5.

Port Alberni. The author of a report into the violent death
of 19-month-old Sherry Charlie in September 2002
wants to know why that report hasn't been made public by
the provincial ministry of family and children develop-
ment.
Nicholas Simons, newly-elected NDP MLA for Powell-
River Sunshine Coast, was commissioned by the ministry
to investigate the events that led to the death of Sherry
at the hands of her foster father, Ryan Dexter George, in
Port Alberni.
George, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter and rec-
ieved a 10-year prison sentence for killing the girl, had a
lengthy criminal record and was on probation for spousal
assault when Sherry was put into his care.
Simons, a former independent social work consultant,
filed the final draft of his report into the death to the
ministry in March 2004. Two weeks ago, the ministry
sent him it's version of the full final report, a draft preci
and a summary version. He was told then that all three
were awaiting signing by deputy minister and director
of child protection Jeremy Berland.
As of Tuesday, however, the report still hadn't been
made public, and Simons would like to know why.
"That's a fair question," he said in an interview. "It's
a fair question that should be asked loudly."
Simons says until the report is released, he isn't at
liberty to discuss its contents. But he added that without
attaching blame to anyone, it does contain information
that could be helpful to social workers and the ministry
in the future - information that could help a similar
tragedy occurring again.
"To me, it's about the best practices in child welfare,"
Simons said. "Should social workers know what will help
improve that practice and protect children? Should that
information be released? You tell me."
Ministry spokeswoman Kate Thompson, said she
couldn't say when the report would be published. "We
don't have an exact time frame for it. We want to make
sure everything's dealt with."
But she rejected any suggestion that its release was
being deliberately slowed.
When you're dealing with matters like these, it can
take weeks and months to conclude everything that
needs to be done, not just days."
But Simons said he believed that if the now disband-
ed children's commission were still operating, the report
would have been released long ago.
"Whether or not the children's commission would
have changed things, I can't say, but they would have
had a report by now," he said.
Established in 1997 in response to public outrage
over the beating death of Matthew Vaudreuil after a
lifetime of neglect, it was the commission's responsib-
ility to investigate deaths such as Charlie's and to
measure ministry performance in looking after child-
ren like her. In June 2002, the year the B.C. Liberals
abolished the commission for economic reasons, it
found that the ministry had acceptable plans for only
half the 9,700 children in its care.
In January 2003 the Liberals shifted responsib-
ility for investigating deaths such as Charlie's to the
provincial coroner's service, but on Tuesday they
said the case was "still open."
***********************************************
B.C. man sentenced in foster-child death
Globe and Mail. Wednesday, October 6, 2004,
Page A8

Port Alberni -- A man who killed his two-year-old
foster daughter has been sentenced to 10 years in jail.
Ryan George, 32, had pleaded guilty to manslaughter
in the death of Sherry Charlie in 2002.
***********************************************
Responsibility for children is a big commitment,
says Paul Willcocks. The mishandling of a ministry
By Paul Willcocks, (April 7, 2005).

VICTORIA - The Gove Inquiry, looking at the horrific death of a
little boy who should have been saved, was clear.
"Death and serious injury reviews should proceed promptly . . ."
The Liberals and the NDP both supported Judge Thomas Gove's
recommendations for children and families' reform.

***********************************************
2005 Legislative Session: 6th Session, 37th
Parliament HANSARD. (Wednesday, March 9th,
2005).

Oral Questions: INVESTIGATION OF CHILD DEATHS
AND INJURIES, (page 12397).

Hon. S. Hagen: I can assure the House and all British
Columbians that children in care continue to be safe.
We have not experienced a rise in child-in-care-related
fatalities. Every fatality of a child in care is thoroughly
investigated with accompanying recommendations. I'm
confident we are well served by the coroner's office,
the child and youth officer and the ombudsman, in
addition to the work done by our ministry to track
significant cases and review practices.

J. MacPhail: By the minister's own information,
the number of fatalities of children in care rose from
the last year reported from the previous year. They
rose by 33 percent. So I don't know what the minister
was just doing to this House when he made that statement.

We're not just talking about children in care here.
As the former children's commissioner said yesterday,
measuring success by the number of children in care tells
us nothing about whether kids are safer. All it tells us is
that there are fewer children in care. Why? Because the
province now has no way of independently investigating
the deaths and injuries of children.

Again to the minister: the coroner, by admission,
doesn't have the teeth to investigate the deaths of children.
If the government's child advocate doesn't have that power,
then how can this minister have any confidence that he is
telling the facts that fewer children in care improves the
safety of at-risk kids? What evidence does he have of that?

Doug Walls will be tried on fraud charges

2005-05-26T19:21:00.000-07:00

Walls to be tried by judge alone
May, 26 2005 - 8:00 AM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) - Former BC Liberal Party
Riding Association President Doug Walls has chosen to be
tried on fraud charges by a judge alone.

The case deals with a money shuffling scheme perpetrated
as a car dealership Walls was co-owner of sank into bankruptcy.

A preliminary hearing won't be held until January of next year.

Walls also worked as a consultant for the Children and Families
Ministry. An audit that included a review of the ministry's dealings
with him found evidence of bad financial management but no sign
of fraud.

The audit led to the resignation of cabinet minister Gordon Hogg
and the firing of his deputy.

Homelessness in the GVRD

2005-05-25T13:26:00.000-07:00

Executive Summary.

Research Project on Homelessness in Greater Vancouver.
July, 2002. Greater Vancouver Regional District.
*****************************************************
Growing Homelessness in Greater Vancouver,
(May, 2005). Columbia Journal
CPPNews - Recent research commissioned by the Greater
Vancouver Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness
shows that rates of homelessness are increasing in the region
and the number of households living at risk of homelessness
in the region remains high.

Preliminary figures from the homeless count on March 15th
reveal that the number of homeless people in Greater Vancouver
has increased by over 100% since the homeless count in 2002. "
This doubling of the number of homeless counted on March 15th,
2005 reflects both an actual increase in the number of homeless
people in Greater Vancouver and improvements in the ability for
the volunteers to find the homeless" said Michael Goldberg, Research
Director at SPARC BC and coordinator of the 2005 Homeless Count.
The preliminary figures show that 2,112 homeless people were
counted during this year’s count compared to 1,049 in 2002. "
The increase in the number of homeless people, and especially
street homeless, is of great concern to all of us," said Bernie
Whiteford, Chair of the Aboriginal Homelessness Steering
Committee.

Recent research based on data from the last Census indicates that
over 126,000 people in over 56,000 households are at risk of home-
lessness in Greater Vancouver. At-risk households and the people
who live in them are highly vulnerable to losing their housing. The
data is based on the 2001 Census of Canada and provides the most
up-to-date information currently available on the at-risk population.
This data will be updated following the completion of the 2006 Census.

"While the rate of households at risk of homelessness has not
changed much from 1996 to 2001, we must remember that
there was little volatility in the cost of housing during that time"
said Daniel Garrison, Senior Planner at the GVRD Homelessness
Unit. "Given the rapid increase in housing prices over the last few
years, one could expect that the rate of risk of homelessness will
increase".

“This new research information will be quite helpful in planning
and developing strategies to prevent homelessness in the region,
said Cheryl Prepchuk, chair of the Regional Steering Committee on
Homelessness. The Greater Vancouver Regional Steering Committee
on Homelessness (RSCH) is composed of people and organizations
operating and funding facilities, services or programs targeted to
people who are homeless or at-risk of homelessness in the region.
The Aboriginal Homeless Steering Committee is composed of people
from aboriginal organizations serving the homeless population.
Both are dedicated to working with communities in developing
solutions to homelessness in Greater Vancouver.
**********************************************************
Draft Housing Plan for the Downtown Eastside.
Report to Vancouver City Council, May 6, 2005.
**********************************************************
The Homelessness Research Virtual Library.
University of British Columbia.

Parental Supervision: Responsibility and Accountability

2005-05-25T11:07:00.000-07:00

It's simple, parents, supervise your kids
By TOM BRODBECK -- Winnipeg Sun
Wed, May 25, 2005

After we all get over the horror and shock of a group
of young kids lighting a 10-year-old boy on fire in
Winnipeg's North End over the weekend, maybe
we can start talking about adult supervision.

Because that's what this story is really about.

I know a lot of people want to pin this ghastly act on the
"mean streets" of the North End, poverty, a lack of community
centres or lax youth criminal justice laws.

But that's the dummy version of the story.

Poor kids, their parents are low-income. If they only had more
money and a community centre that was open at 10:30 on a
Saturday night, these kids wouldn't be out on the street with the
scumbags, the muggers and the pimps. Or so the story goes.

I know it makes for good news copy, but it's pablum.

These are red herrings -- excuses people use to explain
irresponsible parenting. It's easier to blame something
institutional than to take responsibility for your own actions.

I'm not going to hurl blame at any specific parent in this calamity.
There's a child in the hospital who sustained some pretty bad
burns and I'm sure his parents feel awful about it. As a parent,
my heart goes out to them.

It's a horrible thing that happened.

But when I read that kids as young as nine were out on the
street after 10:30 p.m. without their parents and without any
adult supervision, my stomach sank.

What the hell are elementary school children doing walking the
streets late at night in the dark by themselves?

And where on Earth are their parents?

What is this, the Lord of the Flies of the North End where kids
just walk around playing with fire and fending for themselves?

Since Kasey Richard was allegedly lit on fire by a group of kids
age 11 to 14, people have been asking how this can happen.

It's not that complicated. It happens when you don't supervise
your kids.

It happens when children young enough to have favourite stuffed
animals to cuddle are left to explore and experiment on dark
streets alone without adult supervision.

They're kids. Young kids. Some of the children in this story
aren't even in middle school yet, for goodness sakes.

We live in a society where people automatically think there's
some kind of government system in place to look after their kids.

We want cheap, government child care for all.

We want public schools to raise our children.

We want police to protect our kids while they're walking the
streets.

We want tougher laws and maybe bylaws to prevent kids from
buying lighter fluid.

But you know what, if you're going to let your young children
walk around with their friends late at night without adult supervision
-- without even knowing where they are -- they will be vulnerable to
harm. You're putting your kids at risk.

No laws, police presence or community centres are going to
change that.

Step up to the plate, parents. Look out for your children. Teach them.
Supervise them. Discipline them. Know where they are. Because
they need you. They desperately need you. They want you to care
where they are at 10:30 p.m.

Without you, they don't have a chance.

Revised Homeless Action Plan

2005-05-13T18:39:00.000-07:00

To: Vancouver City Council

From: Director of Housing Centre in consultation
with the Director of Social Planning.

Subject: Revised Homeless Action Plan

Priorities & Recommendations:

1. Reducing barriers to access to welfare for the homeless.
2. Developing 3200 units of supportive housing.
3. Increasing mental health and addictions services.

Homeless Action Plan report - April 26, 2005

**Special Vancouver City hall meeting and submissions
by the public and interested parties on May 25th, 2005
@ 7pm. **

Paul Willcocks on Children in Ministry care

2005-04-19T15:01:00.000-07:00

Too little information on the way we treat kids in care
Tuesday, March 29, 2005

An excerpt:

VICTORIA - The Gove Inquiry, looking at the horrific death
of a little boy who should have been saved, was clear.
"Death and serious injury reviews should proceed promptly... "
The Liberals and the NDP both supported Judge Thomas Gove's
recommendations for children and families' reform.
Now it's ten years on, and a little girl is dead. Sherry Charlie
was only 19 months old when she was placed in a Port Alberni
foster home. Weeks later she was dead. Her foster father,
Ryan George, pleaded guilty to manslaughter. Sherry was
battered to death."

Paying Attention:Paul Willcocks on B.C. politics and life.

Child & Youth Advocate of Vancouver - Work Plan

2005-04-12T19:12:00.000-07:00

Sheila Davidson - Child and Youth Advocate
of the City of Vancouver.

Administrative Report & Work Plan - March 21, 2005

Covers the period of May, 2004, when Ms. Davidson
was appointed, to March, 2005.

*****************************************************
Background & History:

Reinstatement of Child and Youth Advocate at City Hall
July 29, 2003

An excerpt:

AND WHEREAS, in 1999 Council eliminated the position of Child
and Youth Advocate following the creation by the Provincial Government
of an Office of Child, Youth and Family Advocate acting as an independent
office of the Legislature;

AND WHEREAS, on February 7, 2002, the Provincial Government
announced it will eliminate the independent Office of Child, Youth
and Family Advocate and integrate Child and Family Advocate duties
with those of the Children's Commissioner, and have them no longer report
independently to the Legislature, but instead report to the Ministry of
the Attorney-General;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED THAT, Council reinstate the
position of Vancouver Child and Youth Advocate, and that the
Advocate report directly to Council and its Committees.
***************************************************
Vancouver Children’s Policy

The Vancouver Children’s Policy was adopted by Council on
March 12, 1992. It is a statement of commitment to the children
of Vancouver and includes: Children’s Policy, Statement of
Entitlements and an Action Plan.

Vancouver Civic Youth Strategy (CYS) Policy

The Vancouver Civic Youth Strategy was adopted by Council
on March 28, 1995. It is a statement of commitment to work in
partnership with youth and the larger community to:

· Ensure that youth have “a place” in the city,
· Ensure a strong youth voice in decision-making,
· Promote youth as a resource to the city,
· Strengthen the support base for youth in the city.
****************************************************

Vancouver Child and Youth Advocate - Practical Model of Advocacy

This policy was adopted by Council on April 27, 1995, following
on Council’s approval of the Social Planning report on the position
of the Child and Youth Advocate.
****************************************************
Advocate's Workplan & Administrative Report-
March 24, 1997/98

The Child and Youth Advocate position grew out of the Mayor's
Task Force on Children, which released its report in May, 1988.
The first Advocate, Rita Chudnovsky, was hired in April, 1989,
and served a three-year term.
The second Advocate, Penny Parry, served a four-year term from
May, 1992, to May, 1996.
The third and current Advocate, Adrienne Montani, and served
from August 1, 1996 to 1999, when the position was dissolved due to
the creation of provincial watch dog entities, Children's Commission
and Child and Youth Advocate.

**************************************************
REVIEW OF THE CITY OF VANCOUVER'S
CHILD AND YOUTH ADVOCATE POSITION
June 21, 1999

2005-03-31T18:47:00.000-08:00

MEDIA RELEASE

The Caring Community:
Accounting for the Impacts of
Provincial Government Changes

March 30, 2005 - For Immediate Release.

The Community Reconstruction Project is a three-year
study of the impacts of the changes in provincial govern-
ment policy and programs within BC’s Capital Region.
The Final Report, released March 30, 2005, describes
those impacts and the steps necessary to repair the
harmful impacts.

Twenty-eight not-for-profit agencies that provide social services
in British Columbia’s Capital region participated in the study.
Participating agencies include providers of services in rural and
urban areas to families, women, children, youth, First Nations
people, immigrants and refugees, people with disabilities, and
people living in poverty. Twice a year during the study, these
agencies completed surveys and met to discuss findings,
strategies and recommendations.

Community Reconstruction Project findings show
extensive evidence of harmful impacts on vulnerable
populations and on the capacity of all of the participating
agencies. There was some evidence of helpful impacts
affecting discrete populations.

The boards, staff and volunteers of the participating
agencies are concerned about the negative outcomes
of many of the provincial government’s changes.
They identify the key government changes made since
2002 that most impacted vulnerable people, agency
services and the community as a whole. The report
includes recommendations by participating agencies
for redressing the most damaging impacts.

The full version (25 pages) of The Caring Community:
Accounting for the Impacts of Provincial Government
Changes and a summary version (6 pages) is available
on the Community Council website.

The Community Reconstruction Project is an initiative of the
Community Council, funded by the United Way of Greater Victoria
and supported by a Steering Committee composed of a broad
range of individuals and organizational representatives.

For further information please contact:

Christina Peacock, Community Council, tel (250) 383-6166

Maureen Duncan, United Way of Greater Victoria, tel (250) 385-6708

Val Green, Volunteer Victoria, tel (250) 386-2269

-30-

Communications Manager
Community Council
1144 Fort Street, Victoria, BC V8V 3K8
Tel: 250-383-6166 Fax: 250-385-6712 email: christina@communitycouncil.ca
www.communitycouncil.ca www.qolchallenge.ca

Kwan Slams Hagen for Dismissing Call

2005-03-24T16:38:00.000-08:00

To Restore Children's Commissioner

NDP MLA says Children's Commissioner was no Paper-Pusher

VANCOUVER - NDP MLA Jenny Kwan today slammed Children
and Family Development Minister Stan Hagen for saying that
restoring an independent Children's Commissioner is a
"bureaucrat's" response to child welfare.

She said that Hagen's remarks show that the Minister is not
up to his job and that he shouldn't be responsible for children
at risk.

"If Stan Hagen thinks that the independent Children's Commissioner
was just another 'bureaucrat', then he really shouldn't be in charge
of a ministry where the lives of children are at stake," said Kwan.

Kwan reminded Hagen that the office of the independent Children's
Commissioner was established in response to the recommendations
of Justice Thomas Gove following the death of Mathew Vaudreuil.
She said that without an independent watchdog, the public has no
way of assessing the adequacy of the government's response to
child deaths and injuries.

"Justice Thomas Gove and the Children's Commissioner were no
paper-pushers,"said Kwan. "They worked day and night to see that
every child death and injury was fully investigated and that we
learned something from the tragic death of Mathew Vaudreuil.
Either Mr. Hagen thinks that work wasn't important, or else the
BC Liberals have something to hide."

In 2002, the Campbell government eliminated the independent
Children's Commissioner and transferred responsibility for investigating
child deaths to the Coroner's Service - despite Gordon Campbell's
own acknowledgment in Opposition that the Coroners' service "is no
substitute" for the reviews recommended by Gove. In addition, by the
government's own admission they have not provided the Coroner's
service with sufficient resources to do the job, and since 2001 has
carried out no full, public investigations.

"After four years of BC Liberal chaos, mismanagement
and cuts at the Ministry of Children and Families, the need
for independent oversight of child protection is BC is greater
than ever," said Kwan.

Organized Crime

2005-03-21T21:43:00.000-08:00

Canoe Network - News- Law & Order - Bikers

************************************************
Criminal Intelligence Service Canada - 2003
Outlaw Motorcycle Gangs (OMGs)
Annual Report, 2003
*****************************************************************
The Nathanson Centre for the Study of Organized Crime
and Corruption at York University.

Investigation of Child Deaths & Injuries

2005-03-17T20:36:00.000-08:00

- Debate in the Legislature

INVESTIGATION OF CHILD DEATHS AND INJURIES
J. MacPhail: Can the Minister of Children and
Family Development tell us how many children
known to the ministry have died or been injured
since they fired the independent watchdogs?

Can the Minister of Children and Family Development
tell us how many children known to the ministry have
died or been injured since they fired the independent
watchdogs?

Hon. S. Hagen: We are committed to keeping B.C.'s children
safe. We're committed to keeping families together,
but at the end of the day, a child's safety always takes
precedence over everything else.

J. MacPhail: By the minister's own information, the
number of fatalities of children in care rose from the
last year reported from the previous year. They rose
by 33 percent. So I don't know what the minister was
just doing to this House when he made that statement.

Hon. S. Hagen: I also want to remind the House that
we currently have 9,000 children in care, which is
15 percent less than what we had in 2001. That's a stark
contrast to the 45 percent rise in the number of children
in care between '95 and '01.
**************************************************
BC Coroner's Child and Youth Death Statistics
1999 to 2003

The Invisible Children:

2005-03-10T21:02:00.000-08:00

The Products of BC's Child Welfare System

Letter to Premier Gordon Campbell about
the Child Welfare system in BC
June 16th, 2004
From Duclie McCallum - former Ombudsmen for
the Province of BC;
Joyce Preston - former Advocate for Children,
Youth & Families;
Cindy Morton - Former Commissioner for Children.

Cody's Death: How Deep an Investigation?
The Fontaine toddler died in a troubled home after
social worker cutbacks. But the Liberals killed the
Children's Commission - and its power to investigate
government fault.

Judith Ince, (Jan. 11^th 2005). The Tyee.ca
****************************************************
Premier Asked to Address Child Welfare Concerns
Mar 8 2005
CBC News VICTORIA – Three former public officials with
years of experience in child welfare are calling on Premier
Gordon Campbell to respond to their concerns about cuts
to B.C.'s child protection system. Former children's
commissioner Cynthia Morton; former child, youth and
family advocate Joyce Preston and former ombudsman
Dulcie McCallum say they're worried child welfare services
in B.C. may now be in an appalling state. But they say
there's no way of knowing, because there are no
independent watchdogs monitoring the situation.
***************************************************
Child Protection Questioned
March 9, 2005
Former children's commissioner Cynthia Morton, former
child, youth and family advocate Joyce Preston and
former ombudsman Dulcie McCallum have gone public
with their concerns over child protection after Premier
Campbell failed to respond to their letter of June 16, 2004.

By David Shreck

**************************************************
Government releases child death numbers
Mar 10 2005
CBC News VICTORIA – The B.C. government has provided
the statistics on how many children are dying in government
care, following pressure from the opposition and the media.
*********************************
Child and Youth Officer for British Columbia
Tel: 1-800-476-3933 or (250) 356-0831
cyo@gov.bc.ca

Hogg is the new Liberal caucas chair

2005-03-05T21:56:00.000-08:00

January 19, 2005

Hogg wins popularity contest

Word coming out of today's provincial government caucus meeting,
held at the Fairmont Waterfront in Vancouver, is that former children
and family development minister Gordon Hogg has been elected
the new caucus chair. Mr. Hogg, who resigned from cabinet last year
over the Doug Walls affair, beat out Alberni-Qualicum MLA Gillian
Trumper for the job. He'll be replacing Columbia River-Revelstoke
MLA Wendy McMahon. Mr. Hogg is said to have been Premier
Gordon Campbell's favoured candidate.

Posted by Sean Holman at 06:10 PM | Category: At the Rockpile | TrackBack: (0)

CSSEA CEO is next Boss of CLBC

2005-03-05T21:34:00.000-08:00

February 02, 2005

Bets on how long this appointment will last?

Rick Mowles, the Community Society Services Employers' Association's chief executive officer, will soon be heading the
British Columbia government's troubled community living
authority, Public Eye has learned. That job was vacated when
children and family development assistant deputy minister
Phil Goodman took a leave of absence for health reasons.
An announcement is expected as early as today. The authority
was supposed to take over responsibility for government services
for the developmentally disabled in fiscal 2003. But that takeover
was delayed following the forced resignation of its first chief
executive officer Doug Walls last year.

Posted by Sean Holman at 09:09 AM | Category: At the Rockpile | TrackBack: (0)

NDP Rebuttal to the Child And Youth Act enacted May,

2005-03-05T15:53:00.000-08:00

The Child and Youth Act
2002-05-09

Excerpts:

Joy McPhail of the NDP:

This legislation repeals two other acts that we're going to spend
some time examining. It repeals the Child, Youth and Family
Advocacy Act and the Children's Commission Act, and this is
what we have left. It's a sorry, sorry, very poor third or fourth
cousin to those two acts.

I was looking through the legislation to see where possibly I could
turn to this legislation and see what this Liberal government's
definition of "best interests of the child" is. And you know what,
Mr. Speaker? It's nowhere in the bill. It's not even mentioned.
It's not even there that the overriding concern should be what's
in the best interests of the child. I thought: well, is that a step
backward, or is it merely carrying on what was in place before?
Here's what the previous child, youth and family advocate's
responsibilities were. "The office of the child, youth and family
advocate is established to ensure that the rights and interests
of children, youths and their families relating to designated
services are protected and advanced and that their views are
heard and considered." That's gone.Next, the advocate was
"to ensure that children, youths and their families have access
to fair, responsive and appropriate complaint and review processes
at all stages in the provision of designated services" - that's gone -
"to provide information and advice to the government and communities
about the availability, effectiveness, responsiveness and relevance of
designated services to children, youths and their families; to promote
and coordinate in communities the establishment of advocacy services
for children, youths and their families." Then lastly, the advocate was
"to perform any other functions assigned to the advocate by an enactment."
That's what's being repealed. All those are gone. How is that a step forward
for children or youths in this province?More importantly, Mr. Speaker,
the advocate reported directly to the Legislature. The advocate was
responsible not to the Attorney General, not to the government of the
day but to the Legislature. The term of the advocate was long enough
so that her or his term would span the electoral cycle and could not become
an election football.

For Our Own Good, Give Canada Away

2005-03-03T21:22:00.000-08:00

For Our Own Good, Give Canada Away

For Our Own Good, Give Canada Away
The “deep integrationists” plan one happy continent,
but we must teach the little ones.

Tue., Feb. 22, 2005
By Murray Dobbin

The Tyee.ca

An excerpt:

As Canadians watch their daily news -- the same sex
marriage debate, the continuing saga of equalization
payments and the fight over splitting the Department
of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in two --
the future of the country is being decided elsewhere
by unelected corporate power brokers.

This particular future is called “deep integration” and
is backed by the most powerful business groups, think
tanks and foundations in the country.
The most recent manifestation of this betrayal of Canada
is called the Task Force on the Future of North America.
Its leaked report shows the plan in its most refined form
to date.

Sound the alarm.

Murray Dobbin writes a regular State of the Nation column for The
Tyee and is the author of Paul Martin: CEO for Canada?

Task Force on the Future of Canada

2005-02-21T18:45:00.000-08:00

The Deep Integration Agenda Continues

A friend said:

"I knew this last year. If you look at the FTAA negotiations
and also about the secret table John Manley sits at regarding
the harmonization of the military and the police, you know
what they are up to, to put it bluntly, Paul Martin slops at
the same trough as all the other globalists. He may cry
crocodile tears when looking at devastation, but he would
have to go a hell of a long ways to convince me that he isn't
a duck...."
*********************************************
Council of Canadians
News [14-Feb-05]

Confidential task force document reveals
true business agenda for Canada

OTTAWA - A confidential document from the
Task Force on the Future of North America
confirms the Council of Canadians' worst fears:
Canada's business elite are planning to push the
country toward deeper integration with the United
States, including abandoning protections for culture
and fresh water.

The task force is a joint project of the Council of
Foreign Relations (CFR) in the U.S., the Mexican
Council of Foreign Relations (MCFR), and the Canadian
Council of Chief Executives (CCCE). It is co-chaired by
former Deputy Prime Minister John Manley and
Tom d'Aquino, Chief Executive of the CCCE. The
document, reported in today's Toronto Star, is a
summary of the task force's first meeting, which
took place in Toronto in October 2004.

"The agenda is a virtual carbon copy of the CCCE's
North American Security and Prosperity Initiative,
which Tom d'Aquino has been selling since 9/11.
If you think this is just an external task force with
little influence, think again. One recommendation,
an annual Summit of the three countries' leaders,
has already been implemented," says Maude Barlow,
National Chairperson of the Council of Canadians.
====================================================
Analysis from a friend:

Among the "contentious" issues discussed
in the document are:

* Eliminating current NAFTA exemptions for
culture and certain sectors of agriculture.
* "Crafting a North American 'resource pact'
that would allow for greater intra-regional trade
and investment in certain non-renewable natural
resources, such as oil, gas, and fresh water."
* Creating an integrated North American electrical
grid.....[..]
* A "North American brand name" - one suggestion
is to portray North America as a sort of "club of
privileged members." The North American identity
is also to be reinforced through the education system.
* A "North American security perimeter," .....[..]
* "Common exclusion lists for people from third
countries."
* A "North American passport." ...[..]
* "Increased consultation on monetary policy,
with the understanding that some form of North
American currency union could become feasible in
the future."
*************************************************
"It's clear that what this task force has in
mind is a North American common market..."

Maude Barlow, National Chairperson Council of Canadians.
**************************************************
Bush's Canadian Fans Get Big Idea on Oil

Braun Mcash, (25-Nov-2004).

Provincial Budget - Fact or Fiction

2005-02-16T19:31:00.000-08:00

Campbell's BC Government Budget

An exercept:

February 15, 2005 - BALANCED BUDGET 2005

VICTORIA — A strong economy and sound fiscal management paved the way for tax reductions benefiting lower and modest income British Columbians, increased funding for health, education and other key programs, and a record $1.7 billion debt reduction, Finance Minister Colin Hansen said today as he tabled Balanced Budget 2005.

Finance Minister’s speech and more about details on this year’s budget.

==============================================================

Political Connections - By Bill Tieleman 

Curmudgeon Explains the Throne Speech

Publish Date: 17-Feb-2005

"Andy Rooney" laughs at Liberal "jokesters".

Did you ever hear one of these corny, positive messages on someone's answering machine? "Hi, it's a great day and I'm out enjoying it right now. I hope you are too. The thought for the day is: 'Share the love.'

Beep. "Uh, yeah...this is the VD clinic calling... Speaking of being positive, your test results are back. Stop sharing the love." -- Andy Rooney

Political Connections columnist Bill Tieleman was so confused by the B.C. Liberal government's throne speech last week that he begged his curmudgeon friend Andy Rooney of CBS's 60 Minutes to explain its positive message to readers.
===================================================
Count-Me-In Campaign Notebook -
BC Federation of Labour

February 16, 2005: Issue 7

PROVINCIAL BUDGET

Analysis of BC's good news election budget was mixed
today, with most commentators agreeing that the Liberals'
plan to inject more than $236 million into social and
economic projects is little more than an election slush fund.

"After slashing services in rural BC, it appears Premier
Campbell is going on a buying spree," noted B.C. Federation
of Labour President Jim Sinclair.

For in-depth analysis of the BC Budget, please visit
the following pages:

http://www.strategicthoughts.com/

http://www.policyalternatives.ca

Speaker restricts NDP questions

2005-02-11T23:31:00.000-08:00

Speaker restricts NDP questions

Last Updated Feb 10 2005 05:07 PM PST

CBC News

VICTORIA – New Democrats say they're disappointed and stunned by new limits imposed on question period in the B.C. legislature by Speaker Claude Richmond. Richmond told the house on Thursday that MLAs must follow strict time lines in posing questions, so more than three people can ask questions during the 15-minute question period. He said members must take no longer than a minute to pose their first question, 30 seconds for the supplementary and 20 seconds for the second supplementary question. The Speaker noted that with an election in May, "emotions and adrenaline are running high." And he cited Wednesday 's raucous question period as an example of what he wants to avoid. It was the first question period of the new session. And with the government admitting it wouldn't be able to keep its promise to create 5,000 new long-term care beds by next years, the NDP had lots of ammunition. A day later, the new limits were imposed.

FROM FEB. 9, 2005: Liberals fall short of promise to seniors

NDP house leader Joy MacPhail says she wonders just who's afraid of her three-member caucus – adding it will now be more difficult to hold the government to account. "All of a sudden there are brand new rules that never existed for question period before, no notice, no heads up, no consultation from the Speaker's office, and I need to know why," she says. At 15 minutes, the question period in the B.C. legislature is already the shortest in the Commonwealth.

Health Canada withdraws ADHD drug

2005-02-10T22:49:00.000-08:00

Health Canada withdraws ADHD drug
Last Updated Thu, 10 Feb 2005 23:45:40 EST

OTTAWA - A drug to treat attention deficit disorder
is being pulled off the market by Canadian regulators,
who are reviewing the safety of similar drugs such as Ritalin.

The drug, called Adderall XR, has been linked to 20 sudden
deaths, including 14 among children, as well as a dozen strokes,
Health Canada said. Children suffered two of the strokes.

None of the deaths happened in Canada, and none were the
result of abuse, misuse or overdose of the amphetamine.

<>FROM MAY 26, 2003: Generic drugs can look like original:
Philadelphia court
**********************************************
Can’t choose your neighbours
Feb, 10 2005 - 1:00 PM
VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) – Residents of a small
community south of Duncan say a judge has rejected
an attempt to keep a young killer out of a group home
in the neighbourhood in Sahtlam.

As a young offender the offender killed a relative.

Security on the home has been increased and neighbours
have heard the man will be under round the clock guard
but privacy regulations are preventing them from getting
more information.
**************************************************
Why do people think young people turn to such drastic
and aggressive behaviour? In many ways, their families
and community failed them long ago, failed to protect
them, include them, respect and take care of them.
Young people deserve the chance for re-habilitation
and re-integration into community. If it is denied, they
will make the only choice available and live outside of
society's rules, morals, values and laws. And they will
continue to leave a path of destruction and pain in
their wake. As a society and a community, we must
choose to offer all youth positive opportunities, human
rights and inclusion.

Pivot & Child Care & BC Govt. Computer Security

2005-02-10T22:26:00.000-08:00

Pivot Legal Society

Located in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, Pivot is a non-profit legal advocacy organization that focuses its efforts strategically to address the legal and human rights challenges commonly faced by those on the fringes of society, such as sex workers, illegal drug addicts, and the homeless.

********************************************************************************************
Child care advocates make feelings known to minister
Feb, 10 2005 - 4:00 PM

VANCOUVER (CKNW/AM980)-- The federal Minister of Social Development meets with his provincial counterparts tomorrow to work out the details of a new child care agreement, and today, child care advocates asked Ken Dryden to make sure that all of the funding promised for that program stays in child care.

They say B.C. has received nearly a quarter billion dollars for early childhood development over the past four years, but the provincial government keeps slashing its own child care budget.

Debra Mayer with the Child Care Advocacy Association of Canada says politicians have been promising a national childcare program for more than two decades, and now it's time to ante up.

******************************************************************
BC Government to increase computer security
Feb, 10 2005 - 10:00 AM

VANCOUVER/CKNW(AM980) – The B-C government is spending an extra eight million dollars over the next two years to increase the security of its computer systems.

Management Services Minister Joyce Murray says that’s a 75 percent boost in I-T security spending, made necessary by the rising tide of computer viruses and spam.

Murray says there were 8-million attempts to infect government computers with viruses and worms.

The state's obligation to children

2005-02-10T21:37:00.000-08:00

As Prilleltensky (2001) wrote in Chapter 3 "...the state also has an obligation to attend to children, not only in the form of protection from harm, but in securing sufficeint material resources as well. For children to get their fair share they require strong-willed advocates."

Prilleltensky, Nelson, & Peirson (2001). Promoting Family Wellness and Preventing Child Maltreatment. Toronto, ON: University of Toronto Press.

The Beginning of a New Idea

2005-02-09T22:18:00.000-08:00

From my perspective, it seems that systems should be more flexible, some families need some support, easy to access community resources, including universal daycare. Some families do well with brief, intensive solution-focused work. There are other families that need longer term intervention in a variety of ways. I really found Chapter 5 in Prilleltensky(2001) very informative in thinking about how to move away from more reactive services and create more responsive, proactive programs that promote family wellness and reduce child harm.

2005-02-09T01:45:00.000-08:00

Goddess Kali, Creator & Destroyer

Welcome to Kali Advocacy Project

2005-02-09T01:16:00.000-08:00

Well, here I am, my first blog. And I started it at 1:20am, when I should be sleeping. Work is affecting my brain too much tonight, so I had to get up and this is where I found myself. It's been a while in coming though. I have been trying out different web formats for this project, but hadn't settled on one, nothing really fit. Maybe this is it. I will have to put some thought into this & learn how things work. Will post more about the project later, when I am procrastinating from writing papers or something, I seem to be my most creative and motivated then. Goodnight.