Violence against Children

Childhood should be a time of joy, love and innocence. It rarely is, however. Violence against children pervades societies throughout the world. It can take so many forms - abuse, labor, slavery, marriage, molestation, forced into conflicts and sex trade and so much more. Why do we tolerate this? Yes, it really is that bad.

According to UNICEF:

• ~158 MILLION children worldwide are engaged in child labor.
• More than 60 MILLION women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18, generally in arranged or forced marriage
• ~1.2 MILLION children are trafficked every year
• Over 300,000 young children, as young as 8 years old, are forced into armed conflicts as soldiers
• More than 1 MILLION children are detained by law enforcement officials, often without charges or trials
• An estimated 70 MILLION women and girls alive today have been subjected to Female Genital Mutilation
• 2 MILLION children are believed to be exploited through prostitution and pornography
• 40 MILLION children, younger than 15, are abused and neglected, requiring healthcare.•

The World Health Organizations facts and figures show:

• Some 40 million children below the age of 15 suffer from abuse and neglect, and require health and social care.
• A survey in Egypt showed 37% of children reporting being beaten or tied up by their parents, and 26% reporting injuries such as fractures, loss of consciousness or permanent disability as a result of this.
• Some 36% of Indian mothers told interviewers in a survey that they had hit their children with an object of some sort within the last six months. 10% per cent said they had kicked their child; 29% had pulled their child’s hair;  28% had hit the child with their knuckles; and three per cent said they had punished their child by putting hot peppers in their mouth.

      A 1995 survey in the United States showed that 5% of parents asked admitted to disciplining their children through one or more of the following: hitting the child with an object; kicking the child; beating the child; and threatening the child with a knife or gun.

      Recent South African police statistics show 21,000 cases of child rape or assault reported, against children as young as nine months old. Only an estimated 1 in 36 cases of rape is reported. And these are the ones we know about. It’s most likely more pervasive and common than we know.

      It takes place everywhere, in the home, in schools, in institutions such as hospitals, orphanages and residential care. They experience it from parents, relatives, siblings, neighbors. It is part of the child’s world: economic, cultural and societal norms form them. Drugs, alcohol, unemployment, crime and cultures of silence are major factors, but not the only factors. Such violence could be part of the child’s world; economy, cultural and societal norms. Children are afraid of their parents, are bullied at school or have to fight their way through gangs and drug pushers to get to school. Children are so very susceptible to such abuse and violence. They may not know that there is anything wrong with their treatment. They may not know where to go for help, or even whom to trust.

      In the United States, on September 30, 2008, there were an estimated 463,000 children in foster care. Most of you, dear readers, are probably thinking that these are mostly children of minorities. I was surprised to find that is completely wrong. Of those children, 44% were white/non-Hispanic, 26%percent were black/non-Hispanic  Just Tuesday of this week, a New York Advocacy Group filed a law suit against the Texas Foster Child System  for abuse and neglect of the children WHILE THEY ARE IN FOSTER CARE! (http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/7496814.html)

      Children are more vulnerable to sexual exploitation. In some countries, it is believed that HIV/AIDS can be cured through sex with a virgin. Home video cameras, digital photography and the internet facilitate child pornography, and sex tourism targeting children, all add to their vulnerability. It’s not just a south Asian problem.
 
     Mexico’s social service agency says that there are more than 16,000 children engaged in prostitution, specifically the tourist child prostitution trade. In Lithuania, 20%-50% of the prostitutes are believed to be minors, some as young as 11. Children’s homes rent or lend children as young as 10 to pornographers.

     In Lithuania, 20 to 50 percent of prostitutes are believed to be minors. Children as young as age 11 are known to work as prostitutes. Children from children’s homes, some 10 to 12 years old, have been used to make pornographic movies.

     Child trafficking is not just for prostitution, but adoption, marriage, domestics and slavery. UNICEF estimates that each year 1,000 Guatemalan babies and children are trafficked to North America and Europe for adoption.

     In the United States, we see children who cannot walk safely to the corner market, to the park or to school, even in the presence of a parent in fear of gang violence, drive-by shootings and drug pushers. Children cannot play in their yards unattended for fear of kidnappers and rapists. School isn’t even a safe haven as bullies run amok unchecked.

     Violence, in its many forms, not only can lead to injury or death, it affects long term health. Survivors are more likely to suffer depression or commit suicide later in life. Most survivors are caught in the cycle of violence with their families, and are more likely to abuse their children. Childhood should not be filled with hunger, fear, and violence. It should be a time of joy, love, family and friends and laughter.

     What can we do to stop this horrible thing? I don’t know, If you have any ideas, let me know. I just know it makes me sick.