AUSTRALIA
The Australian
October 12, 2016
DAN BOX
Crime reporterSydney
@DanBox10
The country’s police commissioners will discuss during a meeting later this month whether to offer a historic apology to the victims of child sex abuse.
It follows rolling protests across the country, including outside the Queensland police headquarters in Brisbane yesterday, where former victims have said officers often refused to believe them when they came forward.
Victoria Police Chief Commissioner Graham Ashton, whose force established the dedicated Taskforce Sano to investigate historic and new allegations of child abuse, will take the proposal to the Australian and New Zealand Police Commissioners Forum on October 19.
Leonie Sheedy, whose Care Leavers Australasia Network has led the recent protests, said police often returned victims to their abusers without asking any questions, and on occasion became abusers themselves. “We want an apology for children not being believed. We want an apology because of the inaction,” she said.
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