14 Feb 2013

NZ lobby group positive about Samoa sex offender registry plan

8:03 pm on 14 February 2013

The Sensible Sentencing Trust in New Zealand says Samoa's move towards a sexual offenders registry needs to be seen as a pro-active measure to reduce sexual offences against children.

Samoa's Attorney General has referred the call by A Supreme Court judge for a sex offenders' registry to the nation's Law Reform Commission to see whether one suits Samoa.

A Trust spokesman, Garth McVicar, says Samoa's move is encouraging, as his advocacy group is lobbying the New Zealand government.

"We've been lobbying for the same thing here for some time now and it's great, I think to see. Realistically, we know now that these offenders can't be rehabilitated. It's not an illness, it's a perversion they've got, so we think it's about protecting the community and preventing further victims."

Garth McVicar says the more information the public has about sexual offenders in communities, the better the opportunity is for such people to turn their lives around.