The case of a father cut off from his children because of the injustice of the Family Court and the actions of a child psychologist has prompted ACT Social Welfare Spokesman Dr Muriel Newman to renew her call for a comprehensive inquiry into the Family Court.

"The Wellington father who was branded a paedophile and kept from his children has experienced the very worst of New Zealand's unjust Family Court system," Dr Newman said.

"This father is a victim of the hysteria whipped up around the time of Peter Ellis' trial. His rights have been trampled by the closeted nature of the Family Court.

"For natural justice to be done, there must be an open review of the Family Court's handling of this father's case. Further, the Psychologist's Board must be required to publish the names of those it disciplines.

"This case highlights the tragic outcomes of a closed court system where open scrutiny is prevented, where evidence is not properly tested, and where lives are ruined. Not only am I renewing my call to open up the Family Court, but I am also supporting the call for an independent judicial inquiry into the entire Family Court. Public and media scrutiny is absolutely necessary if justice is to be done.

"Courts need to have rigorous standards for their decisions to be seen to be beyond reproach. Clearly, that doesn't happen in the Family Court. How many more lives have been destroyed? How many suicides and heartbreak have been caused because fathers have been branded as child abusers without any evidence? How many children have lost all contact with their Mum and Dad, not because they don't love them, but because the Family Court has kept them away?

"The entire Family Court system is flawed. Major reform - by opening up the Family Court - is essential. A judicial inquiry would be a good first step," Dr Newman said.

ENDS

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>