The mother of a teenage rape victim believes she had a right to know that her daughter’s attacker was working in the community.Speaking on condition of anonymity, the woman called for sentencing rules and policy regarding sexual predators to be fixed, and for better communication from prison officials.She went on to say she believed that she and her daughter had a right to be heard at the Parole Board hearing for Tewolde Mathin Selassie, who will be eligible for release in October having served a third of his sentence.Selassie, who was jailed for 25 years in 2007 for the serious sexual assault of the 15-year-old girl, spent time in custody after the January 2005 attack, something that was taken into consideration, making him eligible for parole this year.“The reason [I want to be heard] is to keep Mr Selassie in jail,” she said. “I am sad to say for [the] selfish reason of keeping my child safe.”She recalled how her daughter had already “stood up to her assailant” once by taking the witness box to testify in front of him at his trial.“Some parts were so horrible that all she did was cry,” she said. “I can tell you the judge stopped the cross examination to get her a box of tissue, she used up half the box on that stand in the courtroom.”The woman expressed her outrage after hearing from a neighbour that Selassie was working directly across from her home on Tuesday as part of the Community Service Programme.While noting that her daughter does not live with her, she was upset by the fact that her daughter visits often, and frequently stays overnight.“We have the right to know when this man is back in jail on the days he goes out on his charity work programme so we can sleep,” she said.“This should be easy, we’re even willing to call Commissioner of Corrections Edward Lamb, he can even give a one word answer to a yes or no question. I feel that when the time comes for the parole hearing, just like with the prison decision, no one will have given us a say — we need to have our say.”In the interim she will press on with plans to improve legislation regarding the sexual predators of children.“The sentencing rules and policy must be reviewed and fixed,” she said. “This should be done outside of political debates, with Bermudians helping to push our politicians to get on with it.“We have Bermudians who can review, rewrite and get amendments that will keep children safe; I know we do. And I will use my time and resources to get it done; all help will be appreciated.”Meanwhile, Mark Pettingill, the Attorney General, said yesterday that Government had plans to look at the minimum period for which parole could be considered ‘as a matter of importance’.“In 2002, the former Government lowered the minimum period for which parole could be considered to a third of a sentence having been reduced from the previous requirement that half of a sentence be served,” he said. “This is something I intend to address as a matter of importance.”The Women’s Resource Centre (WRC) meanwhile, backed the concerns of the mother and have repeated their call for a Sex Offender’s Register.“The WRC supports the concerns of victims of sexual assault who find themselves feeling re-victimised upon the release of sex offenders,” Elaine Williams, the centre’s Executive Director, said.“It is important to be aware that the act of sexual assault does not mean that the experience is over. The trauma of the victim encompasses physical, emotional and psychological short and long term effects.“It may dramatically alter the victim’s lifestyle and the victim’s recovery depends not only the ability to recover, but on the availability of services to assist as in counselling, family and community support. This is especially difficult in a small community,” said Ms Williams.In collaboration with the Coalition for the Protection of Children she noted that the advocacy group has been calling for “an effective Sex Offender’s Register” since 2009.“This will assist victims and their families when sex offenders are released from prison. We continue to advocate for legislation to make post release continuing sexual therapy mandatory.“We recognise the right of an offender to lead a productive life and that right may be challenged in such a small community as ours. What is most important however is that members of the community are protected from those who are repeat offenders of such vile behaviour.“It is our understanding that upon discharge from prison, offenders may receive follow-up sex offender’s treatment with Court Services; however this treatment is not mandatory. Perhaps by making the treatment mandatory and through a system of continual post treatment reporting and monitoring, especially for repeat offenders there may be a greater rate of successful rehabilitation and a coinciding reduction in the number of cases of sexual assault,” said Ms Williams.She noted that the Attorney General’s Chambers implemented “a Protocol on the disclosure of information identifying sex offenders” in 2008 that facilitates written requests to gain access to information on sex offenders.Said Ms Williams: “The WRC would like to see the Protocol progress toward something similar to Meagan’s Law in the US. This could ensure that the public has legal access to information when someone is reasonably suspected of being a sex offender or of where they are living. Appropriate restrictions should be applied.”She also reiterated that this is a community problem. Ms Williams concluded: “We all have a part to play in creating awareness and remaining vigilant against this crime.”