Let’s break the silence on Child abuse..

· 13 year old girl sexually abused by her first cousin..
· An 8 year old boy sexually abused by a bus conductor..
· A 10 year Old girl molested by a 50-year-old neighbor..
And I found many more cases of children (male/female) who have been sexually molested by their next door uncle, neighbor, cousins or even someone within the family..
Huhhh unbelievable, ridiculous.. are the expressions these cases generally generate when I talk about them.. Nobody (except NGOs) bothers to open mouth or do the needful to save the children and punish the culprit..
Girl or boy about two-thirds of children are physically abused or molested.. However, most of the children never report the matter to anyone..
I tried to get the reason behind this silence or their ignorance.. Please have a look and try to eradicate this social stigma..
Ø Most of the children have a fear that nobody will trust her/him..
Ø Sometime they cannot make a difference between a safe or unsafe touch..
Ø They feel uncomfortable or shy in talking about their sufferings..
Ø A fear of getting scold by parents..
The 13 year old girl child I met was molested by her first cousin on three different occasions. She did not reveal anything to even parents.. She had a fear of criticism at home and also was afraid that her "sense of dressing in western clothes" and being friendly with everyone would be criticised..
and the boy who was sexually abused by his school bus conductor.. the day he informed it to his elder brother from the very next day, his parents started sending him in a car rather than take any action. .
And then I met Poonam (name changed), a lawyer by profession whose daughter was abused by a 50-year-old neighbour living next door, recounted her sentiments,. “It was not even in the wildest of my thoughts that a person as elderly as my father, would harm my child.. Luckily, my daughter alerted me and I was able to help her.. But when it came to going to the police, I could not ignore the fact that raising voice about this incident could make harm to my daughter's present and future, and I found silence and prevention are the best remedies in such cases..
In every case offenders did not get the due punishment.. rather they go scot-free.. to target and make harm to another child..
It’s shameful that such type of incidents are taking place and rising high in our conservative society.. It’s terrifying.. Still nobody is ready to talk about it openly..
Yes no doubt that prevention is the best remedy.. So let’s quickly talk about the tips to prevent the sexual abuse of a child..
** Educate your child about the impending danger of child abuse..
** Allow your children to voice their feelings..
** Be frank with your child, listen him/her with an open mind..
** Believe your child that she/he is not cooking up stories about being sexually abused. Believing the child is a major step in healing the hurt caused by abuse.. After getting the facts please remain calm and do not respond with anger, the child may feel that you are angry with her/him..
May god bless every child with a loving, caring and UNDERSTANDING parents..
Trust your children and make them safe..