1. Tell us how serious is the problem of child abuse in our society?

The first ever National Study on Child Abuse in April 2007, covering 13 states in India and a sample size of 12,446 children was released by Minister for Women and Child Development showing these stark reality figures:

It would therefore be incorrect to believe that CSA is not a major problem in India. The reason why it has not been addressed as a serious problem is because very few cases have been reported and victims or their parents are not willing to talk about it openly.

We must also remember that this is an issue of international significance because it is covered in the United Nations Convention on Rights of the Child. It is good to know that almost 190 countries have ratified this and India was one of them.

The Government of India is working on an” Offenses against Children” Bill in the parliament in order to address the issue at a national level.

2. What are the various forms of child sexual abuse?
We need to start from the start and first of all define Sexual Abuse amongst children.

Any behaviour by an adult or older person (usually not strangers) who uses a child (below 18 years) for their own sexual pleasure is called Child Sexual Abuse (CSA). It includes touching as well as non-touching behaviours. CSA is a systematic, planned abuse of a child. It is not an isolated incident, but involves manipulation and abuse of a child’s trust and innocence. Abuse always happens in situations when power between two people is unequal. Abuse is never the child’s fault even if she/he acts inappropriately.

There are various forms of abuse that children are subject to. Some of them are
o Physical
o Psychological
o Behavioural

3. How does it affect the children? Does it leave a permanent trauma or is there a hope for the children?

Child Sexual Abuse in particular has grave effect on the child’s physical, psychological as well as emotional being. Some of the common effects of child sexual abuse are depression; post traumatic stress disorder and physical injury to the child if he/she is severely sexually assaulted. The result can be more serious and long-term psychological trauma, especially in the case of parental incest. If there is appropriate counseling and a safe and genial environment created for the child with the support of the family and loved ones, he/she can overcome the negative effects of sexual abuse.

4. How should we guard children from relatives or from outsiders? In the Mumbai case parents were actively involved in abuse!

It is an evil that surrounds children everywhere, within and without the family. So the best way to protect children is to educate them on ‘Personal Safety’, for parents to be alert and to look out for tell tale signs. Personal Safety Education is a curriculum that must be introduced in all schools especially in the Primary Section. This will educate children to safeguard. As an organization we offer this to many schools and even offer to train the teachers in this. A child that is aware and educated on the evils of sexual abuse is hard to be trapped.

5. If we spot an abused child [because it may not speak about the issue] whom shall we report it? What shall we do?

First of all, protect the child; then confront the perpetrator. This would mean to expose him/her, which is the most difficult part. This is when we need to get in touch with the local police, however, we have many loopholes even here which is to the advantage of the perpetrator.. There cases where the conductor of a school bus who used physically abuse girl children, when caught, he pleaded guilty in court and got away with a fine of Rs 1,000 [Approx US$ 20]. He continues to hold the job! In another case, again it was a school bus conductor, who just got fired from his job.

While demanding a new set of laws that deal with sexual crimes, we have to make sure they we protect our children not just from these heartless perpetrators but also from inquisitive and hungry media persons and the police. In the guise of solving the problem, they are found asking probing questions which traumatize the abused children more that the abuse itself. Justice should not be approached purely in the legal sense. The issue needs to be addressed into the core of our society; the nucleus of a community and that is the family. A sense of justice and right living must be sown into family, which will reflect into communities and finally become a trait in the society. The change has to happen in all these three spheres.

6. How adequate is the law to deal with the issue of child abuse?

The basic problem here is that the law in India is hardly sensitive to the needs of CSA victims. When a girl child is abused, she is classed under section 354, which deals with outraging the modesty of a woman. Rape laws define rape as penetration and intercourse; they do not recognise penetration with inanimate objects, the use of fingers and sodomy. In the case of abuse of male children, boys can be booked only under section 377, which criminalizes homosexuality. It is sad to say that the Indian Constitution lacks provisions to protect the rights of children, especially those who are sexually abused. The only way we can book the perpetrator is under the laws of rape which is generally for adults. But, there are many other forms of sexual abuse that are not even recognized by the law.

7. What actions would you expect from citizens, police and Government to discourage child abuse?

One of things that citizens can do is come out in the open and talk about the issue. The Police and the Media must become more sensitive to the interests of the victims. The Government has to step up and make new laws to safe guard our children.