Sir, - I believe that the physical and sexual abuse of other decades should not blind us to the possible psychological abuse or neglect of children that is happening in some parts of contemporary society. In her recent column about young people abused in industrial institutions, Breda O'Brien wrote: "The deprivation caused by being disconnected from family life and being institutionalised deserves compensation in itself." I thought how appropriate this could also be for children who are abandoned into creches, and overseen by strangers for eight hours a day.
Many international studies alluded to in this paper have highlighted the adverse effects of depriving young children of parental love and attention.
Sadly, parents who wish to care for their children at home are caught in a pincer movement. While mothers are lambasted on one side by some feminists who denigrate them for looking after their children, the Government continues to introduce tax individualisation to discriminate against single-income families.
At the end of the day, it is the children who suffer most. If the Government and feminist lobbies are listening, we need individualised attention for the children, not individualised tax for their parents. - YourS, ETC.,
Hermann Kelly, Corrig Avenue, Dun Laoghaire, Co Dublin.