A call by Wanita MCA to make the National Sex Offenders Registry public has received traction from a human rights proponent, but a criminologist worries that it may bring more harm than good.
Police also said that 993 cases of physical sexual assault involving children below the age of 18 were reported in 2020, an increase from 732 cases in 2019 and 591 in 2018. “It would seem that the vast majority are paedophiles, which is why one solution proposed by some is castration. Even in the case of castration, one should never take risks in the interest of our children’s safety. At the same time, it would ensure that paedophilia is not normalised, while the rights of ex-offenders to work and earn a living remains,” he said.
He added that not enough was being done to provide the requisite training to medical and welfare workers to identify procedures for reporting of child abuse or neglect cases. Shankar added that research has found that being placed on a public sex offender registry can result in exclusion from a neighbourhood or residence, job loss, anxiety and other psychological problems.