It’s Time to Educate Yourself About Child Sexual Abuse

More than ever, parents need to talk to their children in an upfront manner about sexual abuse.

The Ryan school murder highlights why parents need to talk to their children in an upfront manner about sexual abuse.

(Photo: iStock/Altered by The Quint)

When five-year-old Priyanka visited the school bathroom one morning, she had no inkling as to what would happen. The little girl was shoved into a stall and was subjected to sexual abuse for over an hour. One of the school’s cleaning staff, suspected to be her assaulter, let her go eventually. Scared and bleeding, the little girl ran back to class and told her teacher about the horrors she had endured. The teacher told her to stop fibbing, and ordered her to settle down at her seat.

Also Read: Ryan Murder Live: SC Issues Notice on Safety of School Children

(Infographic: Rhythum Seth/ The Quint)

Incidents of Child Sexual Abuse

Four-year-old Rohan was subjected to sexual abuse at the hands of his tutor, who also happened to be his subject teacher at school. Upon bravely confronting the teacher about the “bad” things he was being made to participate in, the child was threatened with expulsion and further violence, if he was a “naughty boy” and told anyone about the abuse. “You are a boy, nobody will believe you anyway,” laughed his abuser.

Also Read: “I Keep Seeing Pradyumn’s Face”: His Classmates Are Still in Shock

(Infographic: Rhythum Seth/ The Quint)

Translating Rage into Workable Strategies

It is not enough to tremble with rage every time we receive news of yet another child being subjected to violence, it is important to translate that rage into a workable set of strategies that will save an innocent young life from being shattered.

An educational institute is a space where learning and nurturing of young minds is a priority. Why then, are they not taught how to protect themselves from danger?

Studies conducted by the Ministry of Women and Child Development in 2007 clearly highlighted the prevalence of sexual crimes against children, bringing forth the perhaps surprising statistic that young boys reported being subjected to sexual abuse at a higher rate than young girls.

It seems logical then, to implement personal safety education for children belonging to all genders, instead of restricting it to female students. Young boys/men must be involved in the Personal Safety Process as much as their female counterparts. Interestingly, it has been noted that teaching Consent and Body Safety to gender mixed groups of children has led to the children themselves being empowered and a source of inspiration for their peers.

(Infographic: Rhythum Seth/ The Quint)

Personal Safety Education

Before we get into the specifics of personal safety for children, there are a few issues with the adult influencers to deal with. No parent or teacher will be able to effectively talk about personal safety and consent if they are themselves ill-equipped, uncomfortable, and victims of a regressive mindset.

Personal Safety Education must therefore be age and target-group appropriate, with clear language, sets of safety rules, and skills on how to handle disclosure of abuse by a child.

Helping the Survivors

Communication, empathy, and a non-judgemental attitude towards disclosures of abuse, will go a long way in bringing healing and comfort to a young survivor of trauma.

It is often the hostile reaction of the first person the child discloses the abuse to, which will determine as to whether the child will heal or not.

If one simply listens to the child without judgement, comfort and trust will develop.

At the end of the day, it is our attitudes which will reduce or increase violence and the disclosure of it by our country’s most vulnerable citizens. It is time to shed our regressive value systems, judgement, and obsession with only academic success from our children. We must acknowledge the need for a SAFE learning and living environment for children, in order for them to receive the love and nurturing that they truly deserve in order to live a life of respect, dignity, and peace.

Also Read: After Ryan Incident, Parents Rethink Safety Measures in Schools

(The writer is Founder and CEO, ‘1Million Against Abuse’. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)

(#TalkingStalking: Have you ever been stalked? Share your experience with The Quint and inspire others to shatter the silence surrounding stalking. Send your stories to [e-mail] or WhatsApp @ [phone].)