adminHuman Rights Watch (HRW), in its report released yesterday, cited the recent fatal gang-rape of a young woman on a New Delhi bus in December, an attack that shook the conscience of the nation and forced people to introspect on the way women are treated in India.
The outcry forced the government to rush through new laws to protect women.
A government panel appointed after the attack to examine the country’s treatment of women also shone a light on the high incidence of child sexual abuse and the failure of the government to ensure the implementation of child protection laws.
Child rights activists say the government needs to implement the panel’s recommendations on preventing child sexual abuse as well.
The new report from HRW said such abuse is disturbingly common, government responses are falling short in protecting children and in treating victims.
The report urges the government to ensure rigorous implementation of child protection laws and strict monitoring of child care facilities.
It calls for an end to traumatic medical examinations and insensitive treatment by police and other authorities, which subject victims to further distress.
There are no clear statistics on the number of child abuse cases in India, primarily because of the low reporting of such crimes.
India’s ministry of women and children said in 2007 that around 70 percent of abused children never reported the matter to anyone.
Despite the low reporting levels, the ministry then said 53,2 percent, or one out of two, children in India, reported having faced one or more forms of sexual abuse. — AP
Online Reporter