As the furore about sexual misconduct in the world of politics rolls on, the media is full of claims by various people, mostly women, about supposed, but wholly unsubstantiated, sexual assaults of one sort or another. While some of these individuals have made their claims in the full glare of publicity, others have hidden behind cloaks of anonymity.
Anyone can make allegations against anyone else, whether they be true or not. When the accusers choose to remain anonymous their claims must be treated with considerable caution though this is rarely the approach adopted by the media, which seem to love repeatedly raking over every sleazy story they can find. People are publicly accused of all manner of misdeeds while their accusers remain hidden in the shadows of television studios or newspaper offices. Claims are literally 'dug up' from years, sometimes decades, ago without any consideration as to their validity or any thought as to the damage which false claims may cause.
Those who have been the victims of genuine sexual assaults have every right to feel aggrieved and should take their claims to the police. The police have a duty to then investigate and, where the evidence allows, make arrests and bring the full weight of the law into force. When the evidence cannot be found or is insufficient, the 'victim' may have recourse to other avenues but surely evidence is still required. For Members of Parliament, and others, to be pilloried when the evidence is no more than one person's word, is wholly unjust. Whether or not an offence was committed, everyone is innocent until proven guilty and, in the absence of corroborated evidence, there has to be an assumption of innocence.
The current witch hunt is wrong.
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