8.12.10

In August 2010 a 46 year old Auckland man was charged with organising and promoting child sex tours to Southeast Asia and dealing in children for sexual exploitation.

The motel and property manager was granted name suppression at Manukau District Court and subsequently at the Auckland District Court and remanded on bail.

Yesterday at the Auckland High Court this man’s name suppression and bail was extended until a call over hearing on 9 March 2011. However his actual trial date is set down for 31 October 2011.

ECPAT Child ALERT’s National Director, Alan Bell is concerned that this case is dragging on.

“This is the first time a New Zealander has been charged with an offence of this nature. It is an offence that brings the global trade in child trafficking and child prostitution right into our own New Zealand context. If this charge results in a conviction then it will be an instance of a person willing to sell tickets to New Zealanders to travel overseas with the express purpose of having sex with children.” says Mr Bell. “This is intolerable and yet the case will not be heard for more that twelve months after the charges were laid. In the meantime the charged person remains anonymous on bail with name suppression.”

It is understood that the conditions of bail include a prohibition on the use of a computer. ECPAT Child ALERT believes this is very difficult to monitor and in the meantime questions will remain about which motel might be managed by this man.

Mr Bell supports his concern advising that “In a global campaign mounted by ECPAT and The Body Shop against child sex trafficking some 20,000 New Zealanders have added their name to over 4 million others globally to petition for a stop to this unacceptable industry where children are treated as saleable commodities. This indicates that most New Zealanders would prefer to see justice being applied as soon as possible in cases of child sex exploitation.”

ENDS

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