Violations of child rights (child abuse)

Violations of child rights (child abuse)

There are different connotations to the word child abuse in different cultural milieu and socio-economic situation. . Child abuse can be segregated in different types such as physical abuse, sexual abuse, emotional abuse and neglect.

Emotional Abuse: It Includes acts or failure to act by parents or caretaker that have caused or could cause, serious behavioral, cognitive, emotional, or mental trauma. Emotional abuse is also called as verbal abuse, mental abuse, and psychological maltreatment. This can include using extreme and/ or bizarre form of punishment, such as confinement in a closest or dark room or being tied to a chair for a longer period of time or terrorizing or threatening a child. Less severe acts, but not less damaging, are belittling or rejecting treatment, using derogatory terms to describe for the child, habitual tendency to blame the child or make him/her a scapegoat.

Sexual Abuse: Sexual abuse can be defined as inappropriate sexual behavior with a child. It includes fondling a child's genitals, making the child fondle the adult's genitals, intercourse, incest, rape, sodomy, exhibitionism and sexual exploitation. These acts have to be committed by a person responsible for the care of a child (for example a baby-sitter, a parent, or a daycare provider), or related to the child to be considered as ‘child abuse’. If a stranger commits these acts, it would be considered sexual assault.  Government of Indian, conducted survey of 1,25,000 children in thirteen states. Of the children interviewed, (53%) which is more than half said that they had been subjected to one or more forms of sexual abuse. Over 20% of those interviewed said they were subjected to severe forms of abuse. Of those who said they were sexually abused, 57% were boys.

Neglect: It is the failure of parents/guardian or caretakers to provide for the child's basic needs. Neglect can be emotional, educational or physical. Not providing adequate food or clothing, appropriate medical care, supervision, or proper weather protection (heat or cold) accounts to physical neglect. It may include abandonment as well. Educational neglect includes allowing excessive truancies, failure to provide appropriate schooling or special educational needs. When there is lack of any emotional support and love, never attending to the child, substance abuse including allowing the child to participate in drug and alcohol use accounts for psychological neglect

Physical Abuse: Physical abuse can be defined as inflicting of physical injury upon a child. This involves punching, burning, hitting, shaking, kicking, beating or otherwise harming a child. The guardian, parent or caretaker may not have intentions to hurt the child. It can be the result of May, however, is the result of over-discipline or physical punishment that is inappropriate to the child's age.

Jay Rawal

(MACJ)