Save Minors From Sexual Abuse

Sanat Kumar Acharya

Child sexual abuse is one of major social problems worldwide. After the restoration of democracy in Nepal in 1990, cases of child sexual abuse have been frequently. Our society has been tied up with different cultural and social values and norms. So, it has become a challenge to protect children from such abuse.

As children are innocent, they cannot know what is going on in their emotions and bodies. Orphans and other helpless kids are more vulnerable to sexual abuse than others. This crime seems to have been a terrible headache for developing countries like Nepal. So, it is essential to consider the situation of the sexually abused children in our family, society and the nation. The government and society have an important role to play in protecting children from the trap of abusers and perpetrators.

They may show love and affection to lure the victims. Children are also likely to be abused sexually by their relatives. Nowadays, in order to abuse children, abusers are often reported to be showing the pornography using his/her laptop and mobile frequently. It is not necessary to abuse a child aggressively make him/her a victim of sexual abuse. Even an adult can show uneasy behaviours towards child.

Children go through physical as well as mental sufferings when they are sexually abused. When an abuser uses a vulgar language and harasses children sexually, it is also a sexual abuse. In this way, child sexual abuse depends on the intention of abusers/perpetrators. A child is abused sexually in two ways: either by touching or non-touching. If a child feels an uneasy sexual behaviour, it is known as child sexual abuse.

It is, however, difficult to identify the sexually abused child. If parents, teachers and social workers are involved in daily activities of children, they can identify symptoms of sexual abuse. After comparing the past and present behaviours of the victim, we can clearly find his/her different behaviours. Generally, such victims are found being angry and worry in reading and writing. 

Child psychologists can get more other signs as other symptoms like low self-esteem, confusion, concentration problem and abnormal sexual nature. Likewise, victims show more other symptoms at emotional and physical levels. The victims of sexual abuse should be handled by trustable persons. A child having low self-esteem requires counseling to encouraging him/her. In other words, it is necessary to encourage the victim to express what had happened before. 

The victim can be frightened with the perpetrators/abusers and therefore needs to be helped in order to win his/her faith. To handle such types of case, police, lawyers, psychologists, social workers, teachers and parents can play a vital role in removing the victim’s difficulties. A part from this, it is necessary to support the victim with legal treatment against the abusers/perpetrators. If we could not be able to protect our children, abusers can attack them frequently.