Stronger Punishments- Violence against Children

“The offender abused his own child, in her own bed, in her own home when he was sole caregiver who was responsible for her well-being” (Man jailed eight years for sexual abuse of daughter. (2007, July 13th). National Post, p. A4.) The offender in this article was the girl’s father, was given a sentence of eight years in prison, and the chance of parole was left out of the article and is unknown.

In another article written in the National Post on July 19th 2007, a man by the name of “Donald Martin” was arrested and jailed for what police say “[was] the biggest seizure of child pornography to go through the courts in Canada.” (p. A4.) The result of the seizure of pornography was the rescue of a 13 year old child who was seen in one of the offender’s videotapes. Donald Martin however was only sentenced to twenty-one months in prison.

In a third article read, an abusive mother who “physically assaulted her four-old-daughter and did nothing to protect the child from the sexual assault perpetrated by her boyfriend” (Abusive mother gets house arrest. (2007, July 13th). National Post, p. A4,) received what the judge called “a draconian conditional sentence” (p. A4) of two years house arrest. The boyfriend was “found guilty on nine charges and will be sentenced July 31st.” (p. A4.) The article also does not mention whether or not the child will be taken from the mother. Furthermore the article seems to make the mother the victim as it blames her actions on her “sad life plagued by physical, emotional and sexual abuse” (p. A4) also stating that the woman suffers from “border line personality disorder and major depressive disorder” (p. A4) and finally mentions that her parents were “drug addicts” (p. A4.)

In the article referring to the abusive father, “[d]octor’s suspected the child was being abused when she was brought to the hospital for what the father called a bad case of diaper rash.” (Man jailed eight years for sexual abuse of daughter. (2007, July 13th). National Post, p. A4.) Two days later when the father admitted to abusing his daughter he blamed his actions on alcohol saying that “he doesn’t know what made him think that way” and that “[m]aybe because (the little girl) looks like her mom” (p. A4.)

What is wrong with people in this day and age? But more to the point, what is wrong with the system that punishes these people? How can an abusive mother only serve two years of house arrest after what she has done to her child, who will now most likely suffer with social and emotional problems and will have trouble functioning in everyday society. And the father who abuses his daughter to the degree that doctors said “it was one of the most horrific cases they have ever seen, and that the internal injuries could have been life-threatening” (Man jailed eight years for sexual abuse of daughter. (2007, July 13th). National Post, p. A4,) serves eight years! Why not 25 to life? And finally the man who had “more than 26,000 images, 131 movies and 704 stories depicting incest and adults having sex with children, some as young as two years old” (p. A4) gets a sentence of 21 months!

This is outrageous and teaches nothing to the thousands of other people who watch and participate in child pornography and abuse. The RCMP state that cracking down on child pornography is their “main, main focus,” and if “[they] can identify the children…that’s what [they] strive for.” (N.B Mounties rescue a 13-year-old spotted in child porn images. (2007, July 19th). National Post, p. A4.) This is excellent that they are placing this much effort into this, but if the punishments are not stronger than how will the crime ever stop? How will the offenders ever learn? How will future offenders get the point that what they are doing is wrong and will have serious consequences?

Give me your opinion?