The Ministry of Children and Family Development neglects to put proper plans of care in place, and loses track of whether young people are getting the services they need and breaking the policy. The Ministry removes children for profit, and children are abused for it and children are removed who don’t need to be and end up dying in care or children who are being abused are being harmed because of the Ministry’s failure to protect them for example:
From the infamous deaths of Sherry Charlie and the Schoenborn children, to the child Mathew and Prentice a 15 year old girl who was found over her dead mother’s body and further abused by the system. An 11 year old who was tasered by the police, and Paul and Zabeth Baynes children, the parents were accused of shaking their baby and this promted the Ministry for children and familiy development to remove them. Shaken baby syndrome is just one example of a example of why children are being removed. There was Derek Hoare and his daughter who had Autism. The case of Lisa Arlin a mother who was forced to give up her child because of her disability, and Velvet Martin who’s daughter Samantha died while in care of the Ministry for children and families, the aboriginal residential schools, and the momentous Hughes review, the hand-over of resources to the aboriginal care agencies, the hiring of the activist-watchdog, B.C's Representative for Children and Youth, Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond, her many damning reports not to mention the other 500 plus children and youth who have died while receiving services of the Ministry (half not from natural causes), this file asks, "How does B.C. care for its absolutely most vulnerable citizens?"
There is no shortage of findings about the fact that the child protection is failing our children and families in BC; but how many more critical reports or tragedies will it take before the Legislative Assembly in Victoria and the government are spurred into action to fix the child protection crisis?
Many credible solutions are close at hand. Specific measures that would form an agenda for change can be drawn from a number of sources—especially from the insights of Hughes and Turpel-Lafond. The challenge, however, is to break through inertia and resistance within the Ministry for children and Families, who lack any accountability.
We British Columbians don’t need more inquests, inquires, reviews or want to hear how the Ministry for children and family development is improving, or a 7 years report, highlighting the failures of our children protection system. What we urgently need from government is a commitment to action. It’s time to work together for the changes that will keep children safe in B.C.
