“Who is to see what’s become of me in the country of the blind”!  – HG Wells

This blog seeks to understand how state-sponsored child sexual abuse has become entrenched in Australia’s island state of Tasmania, with generations of public servants wilfully blind to the actions of perpetrators, as revealed by the Tasmanian Commission of Inquiry.  Hospitals, schools, churches, theatre companies, sporting codes and detention centres have been infiltrated by child sex offenders who have been allowed to predate children with impunity over the course of many decades, and perhaps since our colonial origins. This article speaks to the thousands of victims of child sexual abuse in virtually every kind of Tasmanian institution- https://tasmaniantimes.com/2024/03/the-rotten-core-audio-edition-by-nick-feik/

Tasmania is indeed the Country of the Blind!

As an island community of about 500,000 people it has maintained the charm of bygone years but suffered in other ways and not been subject to the socially progressive thinking of the world more broadly. This is perhaps why child sexual abuse has thrived here unchecked!

As a mainlander, only too often I have been reminded that I am an outsider, and that a “Tasmania for Tasmanians” attitude prevails.  This parochialism would be quaint except for its sinister side. The culture of fear is almost palpable, with concerns about reprisals for speaking-up a repeated theme in my conversations with community members.  ‘Snitches get stitches’ I am told!

As revealed by the Commission of inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse in Government Institutions, there has been a longstanding culture across generations that has seen our leaders wilfully blind to the suffering of children made subject to sexual abuse. This has caused immeasurable harm to our children and our society more generally.

One would hope that post- the Commission of Inquiry, Tasmania would be on a better trajectory, but the early outcomes of reform are at best inconclusive. 

Tasmanians, as a rule, appear to have an unlimited supply of indifference to the suffering of our children!

Conversation starters?

1. What hope do we have as a society if we can’t protect our children?
2. Why are people so fearful about reporting child sexual abuse, especially against Police officers?
3. Would you look away when a child is clearly at risk of sexual predation?