Sexual violence and especially sexual abuse of children and adolescents constitute a global social pandemic, which persists, causes worry and is talked about, but which is not sufficiently called out or acknowledged. This is due to the stigmatization it entails for victims and their families. Child sexual abuse (CSA) continues to be a taboo, which has a negative impact on who we are as a society, with a significant influence on individual and collective spheres, acquiring a disproportionate weight in the processes of obtaining and in the administration of justice. This is due mainly to the physical, psychological, social and legal implications involved in the path victims must take to claim recompence for what never should have happened to begin with.
Over the years, studies have shown formidable psychological damage and significant negative impact on the childhood development and life cycle, which continues into adolescence and adult life. This experience, marked by silence and secrecy, generates a rupture in the possibility of recovering (as the Victims’ Law in Mexico refers to) their “life project” (General Law of Victims, 2013).
On August 28 of this year, for the first time, a public apology was given by the Secretaria de Educacion Publica (Education Ministry), in the Marcelino Champagnat case, for the abuses committed against 18 girls and boys. This unprecedented act led by the Oficina de Defensoria de Derechos de la Infancia, otherwise known as the Office of the Ombudsman for Children (ODI) marks the incorporation of September 8 as “National Day of Awareness on the Seriousness of Child Sexual Abuse in Schools”. This act, in recognition of the sensitive nature and of the irreversible damage caused, has led to deep reflection. Although this acknowledgement was both public and symbolic, it should be noted that it is much more important to maintain the focus on justice served to those harmed so as to provide them with a sense of dignity and healing.
To get an idea of the dimension of the problem, studies in some countries describe sexual assaults as a high-frequency crime around the world. As an example, a study reported that in India, every 30 minutes there is a report of a rape. Most of the statistics relating to sexual crimes are severely understated, usually because these types of complaints are hidden for many years before they become evident.
On the relationship of the aggressor to the victim, Finkelhor carried out a national study with 2626 adults and found that 27% of women and 16% of men had suffered sexual abuse during their childhood. The rate of sexual assaults committed by a stranger was higher with boys, at about 40%, while the same crimes committed against girls by strangers was a lower 21%. Similarly, sexual assaults carried out by household members were higher in girls than in boys, at 29% for girls versus 11% for boys.
In other statistics, an article on Sexual Abuse of Minors by Clergy, Viano points out that the John Jay report (2004) found accusations against 4,392 priests, who made up 4% of all priests in the U.S. He also points out that a large number of these sex crimes were committed by lay personnel, volunteers, teachers and auxiliaries working under the sponsorship of religious organizations. Although the Catholic Church was most recently identified for revelations of sexual misconduct toward minors, Viana writes that Catholic parishes make up only 5% of the total number of Christian churches in the U.S. The misconduct also involves the Orthodox clergy and Jewish rabbis, and 70% of these allegations have been against Protestant churches and their clergy.
In recent years, reports from the Attorney General’s Offices have shown that children are the population most affected by these crimes. The development of intervention programs aimed at repairing the harm suffered by survivors7—programs that have become increasingly important within global restorative-justice frameworks—underscores two urgent needs: first, to analyze the conditions in which child sexual abuse (CSA) occurs and identify the variables involved; and second, to implement Child Sexual Abuse Prevention as a public policy within basic education.
According to UNICEF data from 2008, roughly 20,000 children were sexually abused in Mexico, of which 80% were girls between the ages of 10 and 148. The foregoing highlights the urgent need to prioritize prevention. It is essential to recognize that child sexual abuse carries unique characteristics that inflict profound psychological harm and disrupt the healthy psychosexual development of those who experience it. This, in turn, reveals the depth of violence involved and the severe psycho-affective distortions present in the aggressor.
Given all of the above, the movement for the Prevention of CSA must embrace a clear and urgent mandate: NO MORE VICTIMS. No more children harmed—children who later become adults carrying invisible wounds that limit the long-awaited promise of true restorative justice. A social movement is essential, one that ensures children and adolescents have a strong enough voice to access justice and, above all, to guarantee non-repetition, a moral obligation we owe as part of our historical debt. Public apologies may acknowledge what has happened, but they are insufficient as a foundation for public policy or as meaningful therapeutic reparation. We must instead ensure that children—supported, listened to, and informed—become the primary focus of protection. Only by safeguarding their well-being and prioritizing their full, dignified lives can we move toward a more compassionate and truly restorative world.
- https://piedepagina.mx/nunca-mas-encubrir-siempre-escuchar-los-abusos-en-el-kinder-marcelino-d
e-champagnat/ - Bajpai, G. S., “The Psychological Consequences of Victimization,” International Perspectives on Victimology, vol. 2, no. 1, Japan, Tokyo International Institute of Victimology, 2006, pp. 67-81.
- Ibid., pp. 41.
- Ibid., pp. 159.
- Viana, Enrique, Sexual abuse of minors by the clergy: the scandal and its lessons in Marchiori, Hilda. (coord.), Serie Victimología 3, Argentina, Encuentro, 2007, pp. 49 and 50.
- El Universal, “20,000 Children Suffer Sexual Abuse in Mexico,” retrieved February 24, 2012, http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/558622.html
- Liberman, Akiva, Una revisión a largo plazo del crimen, una síntesis de investigación longitudinal, Estados Unidos de América, Springer, 2008, pp. 240-247.
- El Universal, “Sufren abuso sexual 20 mil niños en México”, recuperado el 24 de febrero de 2012, de http://www.eluniversal.com.mx/notas/558622.html