Part 7

In every case in which a complaint or information is laid against any child, or against the parent or guardian of a child, under section 13 of the principal Act, the Justice before whom the said complaint or information is laid shall issue his summons to at least one of the parents of the said child or to the guardian or other person having the custody of such child to appear before the Children's Court with the said child.

_(c) The Court Should Have Power to Make Orders Against the Parents of Offending or Delinquent Children:_ Suitable clauses in this connection submitted for the consideration of the Government are:

(1) Where a child is charged with any offence for the commission of which a fine or costs may be imposed, if the Court is of the opinion that the case would be best met by the imposition of a fine or costs, whether with or without any other punishment or remedy provided by the principal Act, the Court may order that the whole or any part of the fine or costs awarded to the informant or complainant be paid by any parent or guardian of such child unless the Court is satisfied that such parent or guardian has not conduced to the commission of the offence by neglecting to exercise due care and control of the child.

(2) In the case of a child charged with any offence the Court may, in addition to or without entering a conviction against the child, order that the parent or guardian give security for the good behaviour of such child in the future for such period as to the Court may appear just and expedient.

(3) The Court may also in its discretion make an order directing that the children's benefit or family benefit payable to the parent or guardian in respect of such child by the Social Security Commission be suspended until the parent or guardian gives the security required by the preceding subsection hereof for such future further or other period as the Court may think fit or until the Court is assured that the said parent or guardian is exercising due care and control of the child.

(4) A copy of any order made in directing the suspension of the payment of any children's benefit or family benefit shall immediately be forwarded by the Court to the Social Security Commission.

(5) The Court may suspend the coming into force of any such order or may at any time terminate the period of suspension or revoke any order made by it, whereupon the Commission of Social Security may pay to the parent or guardian all such benefits or allowances as would have been payable but for the order of suspension from the date of the said suspension or from such other date as the Court may think fair and just.

(6) Nothing herein shall be deemed to effect or limit the powers vested in the Social Security Commission by sections 62 and 72 of the Social Security Act 1938.

(7) An order under this section may be made against a parent or guardian who, having been required to attend at the Court with the said child, has failed to do so, but, save as aforesaid, no such order shall be made without giving the parent or guardian an opportunity of being heard.

(8) A parent or guardian may appeal to the Supreme Court against any order made under this section.

_(d) When Any Child is Expelled From School Notification of the Fact Should Immediately be Given to the Child Welfare Division:_ The following draft clause expresses what the Committee has in mind:

When any child under the school leaving age has been expelled from school for any reason or any other child has been suspended or expelled for immoral behaviour, it shall be the duty of the principal or the governing body of the school or other person (whichever has the power to suspend or expel), to inform the Superintendent of Child Welfare or the nearest Child Welfare Officer of the fact that the said child has been suspended or expelled from the school, and the said Superintendent or Child Welfare Officer shall immediately on receipt of such information take such action as may be proper or desirable in the interests of the said child.

_(e) Whenever Any Child Has Been Found by the Court to Have Committed an Offence or to be a Delinquent Child or a Child Not Under Proper Control the Principal of the School Should be Informed:_ The suggested clause might read as follows:

Whenever any child has been found by the Court to have committed an offence or to be a delinquent child or a child not under proper control and is either a pupil of a school or is subsequently enrolled as a pupil it shall be the duty of the Superintendent of Child Welfare to inform the principal of such school of the nature of the offence and the circumstances which led to the delinquency in order that the principal may assist the said child and protect the other pupils of the school.

_(f) That the Statute Should be Completely Redrafted and the Child Welfare Division Reorganized on an Autonomous Basis:_ In this redrafting and reorganization special regard should be had to:

(_a_) The precise duties expected of every Child Welfare Officer, whether he or she be a member of the Public Service or an "honorary Child Welfare Officer".

(_b_) The provision of Children's Court rooms away from the Magistrate's Court or the holding of sittings of the Children's Court on days when no other Court business is being conducted.

(_c_) The selection of Magistrates who are specially qualified to perform the duties required of a Justice of the Children's Court.

(_d_) The opening of proceedings to accredited representatives of the press, who should not, however, be permitted to publish the names of persons brought before the Court whether as offenders, parents, or witnesses, or any facts by which they may be identified.

(_e_) The taking of the opinion of a school principal on any recommendation affecting the future of one of his pupils.

(_f_) Provisions for a right of appeal from any decision of the Children's Court or from any decision of the Superintendent regarding any child.

_XVII. Summary of Conclusions_

1. Sexual immorality among juveniles has become a world-wide problem of increasing importance, but the great majority of the young people of this Dominion are healthy-minded and well-behaved.

2. As sexual immorality is generally clandestine, is often not criminal, and even when criminal may not be detected, there are not any statistics from which it can be shown whether, or to what extent, it has increased.

3. During recent years the pattern of sexual misbehaviour has changed: it has spread to younger groups; girls have become more precocious; immorality has been organized; the mental attitude of some boys and girls towards misconduct has altered; and there is evidence that homosexuality may be increasing.

4. The new pattern of juvenile immorality is uncertain in origin, insidious in growth, and has developed over a wide field.

5. Objectionable publications ought to be banned by establishing a system for the registration of distributors of certain printed matter. Urgent action is necessary so that publications now banned in other countries will not be dumped into this Dominion.

6. The absence of regulations necessary to make the Film Censor's recommendations effective deprives parents of the protection which the Legislature intended for them.

7. The possibility that children may hear radio programmes unsuitable for them calls for firmness and discretion on the part of parents and more care by the Broadcasting Service in arranging and timing programmes. Serials and recordings giving undue emphasis to crime or sex are not desirable, nor is the frequent repetition of recordings that are capable of misinterpretation, particularly in times like the present.

8. Advertisers should realize that the increasing emphasis on sex attraction is objectionable to some and, possibly, harmful to others.

9. Although television may not be introduced into New Zealand for some time, plans to cope with its effects on children should be made well in advance of its introduction.

10. There should be a closer bond between school and home. The system of visiting teachers should be expanded and as much liaison as possible established between them and public health nurses.

11. The evidence that the propinquity of boys and girls at co-educational schools contributed to sexual delinquency was not convincing.

12. The value of insisting upon all children remaining at school till they are 15 years of age should be further investigated. When the underlying cause for an application for exemption is misconduct, the exemption should only be granted subject to supervision by a Child Welfare Officer.

13. Whenever a pupil under the care or supervision of the Child Welfare Division is enrolled at a school the principal should be informed of any matters pertaining to the pupil which are within the knowledge of that Division. He should also be consulted as to any recommendation which it is proposed to make to the Court in respect of any of his pupils.

14. The school is not the proper place for fully instructing children about sex, although it may be a convenient place in which mothers and daughters together, fathers and sons together, or parents together, may listen to addresses or see appropriate films. This would help to break down some of the barriers of self-consciousness.

15. In the new housing settlements the younger age groups predominate. They are without the stabilizing influence of older people and established institutions.

16. The work of all organizations which aim at building character is warmly commended as they help to prevent children from becoming delinquent; but facilities for recreation and entertainment will not cure juvenile delinquency.

17. Liquor and gambling are symptomatic of some homes where there is child neglect. The Committee deprecates the growing practice of parents conniving at the consumption of liquor at young people's parties.

18. Tension in the household, separation of the parents, lack of training for parenthood, the absence of a parental sense of responsibility or poor discipline all help to create an unsatisfactory home environment; the child of such a home often feels unwanted or unloved. This unsatisfactory environment or feeling of being unloved is productive of much delinquency.

19. Nearly one-third of the delinquent children whose cases were considered came from homes where the mothers, possibly out of necessity, went out to work. Fathers themselves are also to blame when they neglect the opportunities available in the evenings or at the weekends to interest themselves in the welfare of their children.

20. The high wages paid to adolescents on leaving school are an important contributing factor especially when those youths have not been trained in the virtues of thrift and self-reliance.

21. In many of the cases investigated by the police the children have either been ignorant of the functions of sex or have too advanced a knowledge of its physical aspects. When, how, and by whom the information should be given is very important.

22. The present state of morals in the community has indicated the value of a religious faith, and of family religion. Encouragement should be given to the work of the New Zealand Council of Christian Education.

23. There has been a decline in certain aspects of family life because of a failure to appreciate the worth of religious and moral sanctions.

24. During the past forty years new concepts have entered into society. These concepts resulted from the unsettlement following two world wars. The changes were the increased use of contraceptives, the broadening of the divorce laws, an increase in pre-marital sexual relations, and the spread of new psychological ideas.

25. The Committee is unanimously of the opinion that adolescents should not buy or be in possession of contraceptives. There is, however, some difference of opinion as to how this decision could be made effective.

26. The state of the law regarding indecent conduct on the part of boys and girls operates very unfairly. Boys who admit this offence are charged in the Children's Court under sections of the Crimes Act for breach of which they are liable to terms of imprisonment of five to seven years. Their names and particulars of the offence are recorded in the _Police Gazette_. The girls (some of whom may have incited the boys to offend) cannot be charged; if they are brought before the Court at all, it is only when their parents are summoned for having delinquent children and their names are not gazetted.

27. The Child Welfare Act should be broadened to provide for the doing of preventive work. At present it provides only for the correction of children who have committed offences or who are delinquents. There are also grave weaknesses in this statute and in the whole procedure for dealing with offending and delinquent children.

_XVIII. Recommendations_

=(1) Proposals for Legislation=

(_a_) The definition of "obscene" and "indecent" in the statute law relating to printed and published matter should be enlarged so as to cover all productions which are harmful in that they place undue emphasis on sex, crime, or horror.

(_b_) All distributors of books, magazines, and periodical (other than newspapers and educational or scientific publications) should be required to register their names and the names of their various publications. If they offend against the proposed law regarding objectionable publications, their licences to produce or distribute should be cancelled.

(_c_) A new offence should be created whereunder boys and girls who are guilty of indecent conduct with one another should both be liable to be charged as delinquents in the Children's Court and the practice of recording the names of boys in the _Police Gazette_ as having been summarily dealt with should cease.

(_d_) In all cases where children are summoned to Court their parents (if available) should be required to attend with them.

(_e_) The Court should have the power to require the parent or guardian of an offending or delinquent child to pay the fine or costs and to give security for the future good behaviour of the child unless the Court is satisfied that the conduct of the parent or guardian has not conduced to the child's wrong doing.

(_f_) The Court should also be given power to direct that the children's benefit or family benefit payable to any parent or guardian by the Social Security Commission be suspended until he gives the security required by the Court or for such further or other period as the Court may order. The material interests of the child should be preserved by enabling the Court to suspend the operation of the order, or to cancel it upon being satisfied that the parent or guardian has given the required security to exercise due care and control.

(_g_) Effect should be given to the recommendations regarding enrolment or expulsion of children as set out in Section XVI (5) (_d_) and (_e_) of this report.

(_h_) The Child Welfare Act should be completely recast in such a way as to remove the weaknesses indicated in this report and to suit modern needs. "Child welfare" should be given an autonomous status under the Minister of Social Welfare.

=(2) Proposals for Administrative Action=

The following outlines of administrative action are not dependent upon the amending of any Acts of Parliament such as were recommended above:

_(a) Police Department_

The training and duties of policewomen should be considered with a view to deciding the best method of dealing with girls involved in sexual offences.

_(b) Department of Internal Affairs (Films)_

To facilitate the practical working of film censorship steps should be taken to gazette the outstanding regulations empowered under the relevant Acts of 1934 and 1953.

_(c) Broadcasting Service_

It is suggested:

(i) That the service ensure that the concept "Crime must never pay" is more prominently featured in crime serials.

(ii) That a married woman be immediately appointed to the auditioning panel.

_(d) Censoring Authorities_

Any Departments concerned with censorship should maintain a liaison to produce as far as possible a uniform interpretation of public opinion and taste.

_(e) Department of Education_

(i) The Department of Education should discuss with the Department of Health the respective duties of public health nurses and visiting teachers to prevent overlapping and to ensure the best possible employment of these officers.

(ii) Following upon the conference outlined in the previous paragraph the appointment of additional visiting teachers should be accorded priority.

(iii) The Department should consider what type of officer is best suited to help with problem pupils in post-primary schools.

(iv) The Department should request that residences be set aside for some teachers in housing settlements.

(v) In areas where there is a lack of facilities for recreation and entertainment the Department should consider the possibility of making school grounds and buildings available to responsible organizations.

_(f) Research into Juvenile Delinquency_

A long-term project for the investigation of juvenile delinquency in all aspects should be undertaken.

=(3) Parental Example=

New laws, new regulations, and the prospect of stricter administration may help to allay the well-founded fears of many parents for the future of their children. It would, however, be a pity if parents were thereby led into any relaxation of their own efforts. Wise parenthood implies firm control and continual interest in the doings of sons and daughters. But what is most needed is that all people should, by right living and by the regularity of their own conduct, afford the best example for the conduct of the rising generation.

_XIX. Appreciation_

As a supplement to this report the Committee desires to place on record its thanks to all those who have assisted it in discharging its responsibilities.

The many organizations and witnesses who have expressed their views have been most helpful, and the Committee is also obliged to all those who have sent letters, books, and papers for consideration. The many press clippings of editorials, news articles, and letters to editors have enabled the Committee to obtain an understanding of public sentiment on various matters.

The heads of Government Departments have answered every inquiry for information which has been submitted to them.

The Public Service Commission has placed facilities at the disposal of the Committee and has released stenographers and typists from their ordinary duties to enable this report to be presented on the date fixed by the Committee early in its deliberations.

In particular, the Committee expresses its great appreciation of the manner in which Mr L.J. Greenberg has performed the secretarial duties. He has dealt with correspondence, and has shown a splendid sense of timing in arranging for the appearance of witnesses.

=APPENDIX A=

=Table of Sexual Offences for Which Proceedings Were Taken in New Zealand=

_1920 1925 1930 1935 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944_ Rape and attempted rape 11 16 16 19 12 6 22 40 34

Carnally knowing girls under 16 14 55 68 86 99 41 69 69 71

Attempts to carnally know girls under 16 7 9 8 14 15 6 5 5 2

Indecent assault: Females 63 98 107 122 153 113 171 105 134

Indecent assault: Males 12 47 38 46 103 104 118 68 61

_1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1952 1953_ Rape and attempted rape 27 14 32 14 24 31 29 35 19

Carnally knowing girls under 16 59 73 66 61 82 90 81 106 109

Attempts to carnally know girls under 16 17 18 14 13 7 27 23 36 33

Indecent assault: Females 112 104 147 164 153 149 183 175 311

Indecent assault: Males 119 89 109 110 86 82 91 122 183

=APPENDIX B=

=List of Witnesses, Submissions, and Order of Appearance=

One hundred and forty-five (145) witnesses appeared before the Committee in Wellington, Christchurch, or Auckland, and 18 of these witnesses were recalled on one or more occasion.

_(a) Witnesses_

Witnesses are grouped as follows:

_Government Officials_--

Departmental Heads: Broadcasting, Education, Police. Other Officers: Customs, Film Censor, Police (4), Superintendent of Child Welfare 10

_Educational Authorities_--

New Zealand Council of Christian Education New Zealand Council of Education Research New Zealand Educational Institute (2) Professor of Social Science Director of Physical Education Tutor, Adult Education Director, Catholic Education Child Welfare Officers (5) Chairman, Board of Governors Principals (9) Inspectors (4) Visiting Teacher Federation of Parent Teachers Association 29

_Welfare Organizations_--

Religious-- Christian Endeavour Union Methodist Presbyterian (2) Roman Catholic (6) Salvation Army (8) 18 Other-- Boy Scouts (2) Crichton Cobbers Club (2) Girls' Life Brigade Hutt Valley Youth Survey Nursery Play Centres (3) Orphanages (3) Sea Cadets (2) Youth Hostels (2) Y.M.C.A. (3) Y.W.C.A. (4) 23

_Church Bodies_--

Inter-Church Council on Public Affairs (2) Hutt Valley Ministers Fraternal (4) Baptist Church of England Methodist Presbyterian (6) 15

_Women's Organizations_

Anglican Mothers' Union (2) Catholic Women's League National Council of Women (2) 5

_Commercial Interests_--

Booksellers (3) Chemists' Guild Film Distributors and Exhibitors (7) Milk Bars (3) Newspaper Editor 15

_Professional Societies_--

Christchurch Psychological Society (4) New Zealand Paediatric Society 5

_Civic Leaders_--

Mayor, Lower Hutt 1

_Sporting Bodies_--

Wellington Hockey Association 1

_Miscellaneous Groups_--

Communist Party of New Zealand New Zealand Rationalists Association 2

_Private Individuals_ 21

Total 145

(_b_) SUBMISSIONS

Practically all the above witnesses, jointly or severally, provided written submissions, and some provided more than one submission. In all there were 83 written submissions from 77 witnesses or groups of witnesses.

In addition, 120 submissions were received from individuals or organizations that did not appear before the Committee. Many other persons wrote to the Committee, and a large number supplied samples of publications containing material considered harmful.

Submissions may be grouped as follows:

(1) Those supplied by the witnesses whose names are marked with an asterisk (*) in the list showing the order of appearance.

(2) Those supplied by the 120 other individuals and organizations listed below.

Anglican Provincial Youth Council (J.C. Cottrel, Secretary), Auckland. Archibald, Jean K., Teacher's College, Ardmore. Arnold, Miss E.S., Children's Editress, Nelson Evening Mail, Nelson. Associated Booksellers of New Zealand (D.K. Carey, Secretary), Wellington. Associated Churches of Christ in New Zealand (Religious Education Department), Christchurch. Auckland Provincial Public Relations Office Inc. (George F. Gair), Auckland.