Pitcairn Islands

Compensation for the victims of the child sex abuse on Pitcairn        9 October 2008

Victims of child sex abuse on Pitcairn Island will be able to apply for compensation the Foreign & Commonwealth Office announced today.    The abuse was revealed in 1999 and led to an extensive police investigation and trials resulting in the conviction of eight men.

Foreign Office Minister, Gillian Merron, announced the compensation scheme for the victims of child sex abuse identified during Operation Unique.

She said:

“It is right that we have established a mechanism to offer compensation to the victims of the past child sex abuse on Pitcairn. We are working closely with the UK’s Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority to ensure the levels of compensation are linked to the amounts awarded in the UK.

What happened to these women was terrible and no amount of money will take that pain away. But I hope this will give them some recognition of their suffering.

This is a significant step and it is the right thing to do.”

Notes

1.    The scheme will be administered by the Pitcairn Governor’s office in Wellington which will assess each application. If the applications meet the eligibility criteria, the UK Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority will offer advice on the levels of compensation to award in accordance with their guidelines. The closing date for applications is 31 March 2009.

2.    People wishing to apply can obtain a copy of the guidance and application form from the Pitcairn website (www.pitcairn.pn) or from the Governor’s office:

Office of the Governor of Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands
c/o British High Commission
PO Box 1812
Wellington 6140, New Zealand
Tel: (+64) (4) 924 2888
Fax: (+64) (4) 924 2831

OTD
October 2008