Grace Tame, a former Australian of the Year, is pleading with the Albanese government to address a legislative loophole that permits paedophiles to isolate their superannuation from victims of sexual abuse.
Currently, victims of crime who file civil lawsuits seeking damages against their assailants are prohibited from getting access to any money kept in the offender’s superannuation accounts.
Some convicted felons who have shielded their riches from restitution actually resume living “opulent lifestyles” after serving only brief prison sentences, according to Ms. Tame.
According to Grace, who spoke to ABC News, “Paedophiles are able to conceal their assets in their super, which should be available to pay survivors of abuse.”
“This indicates that it is the taxpayer’s responsibility to pay for the recompense of survivors.
She continued, “What has to change is paedophiles should be accountable for compensating their victims.
The legal loophole, according to Ms. Tame, is yet another illustration of how the odds are stacked against sex assault victims and survivors.
People need to recognise the underlying disparity in power between survivors and child predators, she emphasised.
High-powered recidivist offenders “may appear cash-poor on paper,” the campaign asserts.
This enables them to promptly resume their lavish lifestyles after finishing normally brief sentences without suffering any financial setbacks.
High-profile paedophiles Maurice van Ryn and Peter Liddy were unable to collect superannuation when their numerous victims were compensated.
For assaulting boys sexually between 1969 and 1986, Liddy, a former magistrate, received a 25-year sentence in prison in 2001.
During camping holidays in the 1980s, he frequently chose his victims at an Adelaide surf life-saving club.
Van Ryn admitted to assaulting minors between the ages of eight and 16 and was sentenced to at least 13 years in prison in 2015.
The disgraced sex offender attempted to avoid paying the children he sexually assaulted by saying he was down to his last $26,000, yet it is thought that he formerly owned shares worth over $9 million.