By James Simons-
Cliff Richards bid to lobby Parliament on the publicity of sex allegations is valid.
After enduring months of hell in duck of public perception, Cliff Richard plans to lobby Parliament next month to change the law on how sexual allegations are handled with the e-media.
The British singing legend was accused of molesting four boys at an evangelical meeting in Sheffield, 1985. He has always protested his innocence.
Following the allegations, Sir Cliff Richards house was raided by police in the full glare of the media, when the BBC filmed the raid.
After months of investigations, the case was dropped because of insufficient evidence. The 72-year-old British icon was relieved but threatened to sue the BBC and Yorkshire Police for the embarrassment the whole affair caused him.
The dust had not settled much when two of his accusers asked for a review of the decision to drop the case. This caused him further heartache, as the media reminded the.world about the suspicious cloud hanging over him.
Now, the knighted star will lobby parliament to.change the law in.order to prohibit the press from disclosing information about accused individuals before they are charged, or even better, convicted.
SUPPORT
He has the support of a former England police chief and current Liberal Democrat peer. Together, they can lobby Parliament successfully.
Presently, the law permitting alleged offenders to be exposed in the.media rests on the view that it may encourage others to come.forward.
FLAWED
However, that perspective is flawed because nobody deserves to face the shame of suspicion, especially if they are innocent.
Victims of abuse who lack the courage to come forward until someone else makes an allegation should only have themselves to blame.
The law currently grants anonymity to the accused, whilst revealing the identity of the accused. This is unbalanced in its current form, something parliament needs to evaluate.
The one curious point is that Richard has never even suggested a reason or motive for the allegations against him, though this in no way makes him guilty.
EXPLANATION
Most accused celebrities do not offer an explanation for the allegation being made against them, making the mind wonder if there.may be.some.sort.of.background to the allegation.
However, all is speculative. Facts and evidence are what matters in law. The peculiarities of human beings always complicate any analysis based on speculation.
Sir Cliff Richard will likely achieve his Parliamentary goal if approached cleverly and with the right arguments. We will find out next month.