SOCIAL PROBLEMS

NZ Truth, Issue 1258, 9 January 1930, Page 15

SOCIAL PROBLEMS

.How. Legislation May Solve . Them ' CHILDREN'S WELFARE (By Mrs. E. Peryman, of the Women's Christian Temperance Union, m a special interview with "N.Z. Truth.") ' Of every thousand children born, fifteen are illegitimate. That is one argument m favor of alteration m the law requiring parents to. register the birth of their children within six weeks !

IT is already difficult enough to gather particulars regarding the illegitimate child and its parents at times, and if only two weeks were allowed m which to register the birth the work of those concerned m the welfare of the child , would be made much easier. The Women's -Christian Temperance Union is going to see if it cannot get something done m the matter to facilitate the work of the Child Welfare Department. Our law on the subject is the same as the old; English law, but the law of England was gradually changed, whereas ours was not. > Compared with other countries we are very backward m the most important matter of the welfare of the

illegitimate child. Here the subsequent marriage of the parents makes the child legitimate if there is no obstacle m the way of marriage at the time of birth. According to the wording of the law, then, no matter if the parents marry ultimately, the poor child is not legitimate if there was any reason why the marriage could not take place at the time of its birth. Then something should be done to alter the existing regulation concerning the registration of the unfortunate child. At present the child, m later years, has only to see its own birth certificate to know it w r as born out-of wedlock. The registration papers provide that it shall be stated and the clause is included m the copy of the birth certificate. That is a most unfortunate state of affairs, but it could be . overcome by the Registrar- General ■•" . being empowered to instruct that only the lower, or 1/-, birth certificate be issued to the applicant on such occasions. The clause regarding illegitimacy is not included m the lower certificate and only on the other, or two shillings and sixpence one. The question of closed courts is prominent at present. We want maintenance, affiliation and indecent assault cases heard m closed courts, and there is undoubtedly a strong ai'gument m favor of the request. I wish it to be fully understood that we are hot asking that the press be excluded from such courts! It is the rabble—the great unwashed — that congregate behind the rail at the rear of the court whose exclusion it is we are aiming for. I could speak o.f some instances that strongly support the argument. I know of at l^ast one case where the-gii-1 concerned m the case was "marked." When she left the court she .was approached 'by one of these men who frequent the rear of the court and an attempt was. made to lead the poor child further astray. One argument against closed courts is the suggestion of "star chamber" methods. How could that be if the press -was. not excluded? It is those who just go to. gape against whom the courts should be closed.' "'- ■

We are much better off than we were regarding' conditions' m Children's Courts, but we are still behind Canada. There] the child does not need to go to court, but merely tells its tale to a woman magistrate.' \ - The age of consent is a matter that is still under argument', and , the Women's Christian Temperance Union believes the age should be increased from 16 years to 21 years. The union has fallen m with the other societies m asking that the age be raised to 18 years, however, for it thinks that would at least be better than the existing age. We do not take a one-sided view of the matter, however, and ask that both sexes be protected ' until they are 21 years old. The young: man, we maintain, should be protected from the older woman just as much as the young girl should be protected from the man. In the event of both parties being under 21 years we believe they should receive reformative treatment. . With the full-grown man who mis- v behaves we have no sympathy. The W.C.T.U. is a.lso strongly of opinion that m all court cases brought against minors women police would be most useful. * Some people say that women want to run everything, but we do not. . There are certain duties for the man and others for the woman. [With reference to Mrs. Peryman's interpretation of the Act that the legitimation of a child is impossible on subsequent marriage of the parents if there existed any obstacle to marriage at the time of the child's birth, the actual provision of the legislation is that legitimation now applies even if there is an obstacle. — Ed. J