held into the events surrounding the death of toddler D'shun Dill. D'shun's father, Paul Christian Darrell, is now serving 14 years in prison for the manslaughter of his son.

The Minister of Health and Social Services, Dr. Clarence Terceira, has strongly denied allegations by Mrs. Cooper that incompetence in his Department of Child and Family Services contributed to the two year-old boy's death. Dr.

Terceira has carried out an investigation in his own ministry and has been quoted as saying "...we have never had D'shun in our care and have never been in a position to give him to his father, or anyone else for that matter''.

Mrs. Cooper, who chairs the Coalition for the Protection of Children, believes that the Department was aware of the danger D'shun was in after he was taken from the care of a foster mother and returned to his father and did nothing to protect the child.

Mrs. Cooper further says that the Department of Child and Family Services regularly visited D'shun when he was in foster care and had helped with the foster mother's plan to adopt D'shun. Mrs. Cooper says that the Department did have an ongoing relationship with D'shun and that the foster mother made it clear to them the circumstances that led to her having D'shun in her care.

There is even an allegation that when a member of the public complained, a social worker went to Paul Darrell's home, got no answer and did nothing else.

A few days later the child was dead.

It is clear to us that D'shun and his mother lived at the Physical Abuse Centre for a month and any reasonable person might think that it is the job of the Department of Child and Family Services to know what is happening to families and children who need to use such a centre. The secret of saving abused children is to reach out rather than to be sorry after their lives are ruined.

Any Department, especially a Department accused in the death of a small child, will try to cover up any deficiencies. Mrs. Cooper has said that the Minister in his inquiry went to the very people who might be involved and the information he received from them should not be relied on.

Whether Mrs. Cooper's accusations are correct or not we do not know. However there are all sorts of reports and rumours floating about the community and the allegations are very serious. There is great disquiet over this case and there has been growing concern over the abuse, physical and sexual, of children in Bermuda.

If as Dr. Terceira says, the Department has never had D'shun in its care, then let the public be clear on that fact. If, as Mrs. Cooper claims, the Department was aware of the danger to the child and allowed him to return to Paul Darrell, then let's get that out in the open.

These allegations are serious and an internal inquiry is not enough.