Mind Over Matter: Chemical Castration For Paedophiles
“PAEDOS TO BE CHEMICALLY CASTRATED.” So says the Mirror’s front-page headline.
“Reid plans to give perverts jabs that stop stick desires.” (Pic: Beau Bo D’Or)
Nothing like bit of direct action to please the voters. Tough on crime, tough on the causes of crime. And what’s tougher than the Home Secretary fit for purpose and armed with a rusty needle?
But does chemical castration work? Does it alter the criminal’s mind so they no longer lust after minors? Will it stop recidivism? Does one injection do the job or will the criminal need a lifetime course of the stuff?
On that last point, the Mirror says paedophiles will need a large dose of drugs at the start of their treatment and then weekly and monthly top-up injections.
This is treatment rather than punishment. This is a chance for the paedophile to curb their criminal desires and not return to prison.
And the Mirror says it works. Readers learn of “studies” that show rates of reoffending by those who have undergone the treatment in Scandinavia and the US have fallen from 43 percent to just five per cent.
Make it a mandatory condition of parole and chemical castration may curtail the crime. A Home Office spokesman says those who volunteer for the scheme will have to continue the treatment if they want to avoid a return to jail.
But what happens when the jail term is served and they are free? Will the criminal still be injected? And if they are not, will their desire, inhibited by drugs, return with a vengeance?
In the US, the drug of choice is Depo-Provera. It contains progesterone which acts on the brain to inhibit hormones that stimulate the testicles to produce testosterone. Sexual desire is lessoned. The man can still have sex but will not want to. He may still fantasise about molesting children but will not feel inclined to do so.
There is a good argument in a favour of chemical castration. But we routinely hear how devious paedophiles are. The castration alters the body but not the mind. And how many will want to take the drug? Not all those convicted of the crime will…
Posted: 13th, June 2007 | In: Tabloids Comments (15) | TrackBack | Permalink
