The appalling neglect, abuse and torture of the four year old child “B” at the hands of her father and mother mirrors the horror endured by the eight year old Victoria Climbié before she was murdered in 2000. The parents of child “B”, Kimberley Harte and Samuel Duncan,  are likely to be sentenced at Middlesex Guildhall Crown Court tomorrow for the perpetual assaults on the child that included pouring boiling liquid over her hands, ripping put her hair and repeatedly kicking her groin. Child “B” was close to virtual death before the horror of her experience was finally acknowledged.

The fact the care services allowed the battering to continue reflects the low priority given by local authorities to child protection issues. Westminster handed the child back to her perpetrator parents despite objections from her foster carers and signs of horrific and visible injuries.

The Victoria Climbié Foundation is concerned that the real lessons of the Laming Public Inquiry report are being ignored by social services. Local authorities need to ensure that their response to such cases is totally child centred and that they do not simply pay lip service to this issue.

Mor Dioum, Director of the Victoria Climbié Foundation,
said, “It is a miracle that Child B survived such horrific abuse. It is equally appalling that Westminster did not intervene when they were required to do so and by its own admission, in the internal review, its lack of child-centered approach prolonged the child’s agony. In order to improve their performance Westminster must agree to an external inquiry into the case. We will ask the children’s Minister and Ombudsman to institute a transparent and public investigation into the case so that other children do not have endure a similar ordeal”

Together with The Monitoring Group, UK’s leading anti racist casework organisation, the Victoria Climbie Foundation has organised the first ever Memorial Lecture to remember Victoria Climbié. The event will take place on Monday January 26th at 6pm at the Mahatma Gandhi Hall at the Indian YMCA, 41 Fitzroy Street, London WC1. The Guest speaker is Lord Laming.

For further information contact Victoria Climbié Foundation UK, c/o TMG at 020 8843 2333 or Mor Dioum on 07903 614265