Madam, - I read with some sadness John Waters's piece on the rights of the child (Nov 6th). He argued that the "referendum is much less about extending rights to children than about weakening the powers of parents" and that parents are the best protectors of children. For the most part he is right but sadly I remember that not all parents protect their children and some evil ones use their "parental right" to stop any interference or discovery by the authorities of abuse.
In particular I want to remind readers of the McColgan children in the northwest whose father systematically and brutally abused all of his children over a number of years. In that dreadful case the "authorities" reported they didn't want to override the parents' rights and intervene in the family. We must learn from our mistakes and place children at the heart of all out laws - they need and demand our protection. - Yours, etc,
SHARON FOLEY
Ballycarroll,
Portlaoise.