CHILD ABUSE: A SINISTER NORM DEEP EMBEDDED IN OUR SOCEITY?

A shocking revelation

At a regular press briefing recently, Police Media Spokesman, Senior DIG Ajith Rohana disclosed a shocking revelation that a teenage girl aged 15 years was sold on line for prostitution in Colombo.  He went on to state that more than a dozen of arrests have already been done in this connection and more arrests are expected to be made in due course.  In this ugly episode, the underage girl in question has been brutally raped and used by a score of people upon being sold online.  Those who were taken into custody, include her mother, her paramour, a minister of a neighboring country, a provincial politician, and a monk in saffron robe, a consultant medical officer in military, the web designer who uploaded the advertisement and the accomplices who facilitated the transport of the girl in a trishaw.  As it was reported, the monk who was being detained, has allegedly used the girl eleven times in his sacred abode of a temple in Kelaniya area at a cost of Rs 20,000/- each time. According to the unconfirmed sources, nearly 40 men were believed to have abused her at a various places in Colombo and suburbs.  As per the initial investigations, the girl was raped by her mother’s paramour with her full knowledge and consent before being sold up for grabs by others.  As at now, the police investigations are continuing and more details of this crime may unfold in ensued days.  

Just one in a series 

The above incident is not just ‘one off’ incident which happened out of the blue sky.  In 2015, a 15 year girl named Seya Sadewmi was abducted while in her sleep, brutally raped and inhumanly murdered.  Her decomposed naked body was found a few days after the crime.  The police sources later declared that the person who was arrested on suspicion, admitted to committing this barbaric crime.  It was disclosed in the popular media as well but in a twist of fate, DNA samples didn’t match with the suspect who admitted.  Eventually, the suspect’s brother was arrested on suspicion.  His DNA samples were in conformity.  Upon being released from remand custody, the first suspect held a press briefing, may be at the instigation of some human rights activists, denied ever admitting to the crime.  He sheepishly stated that he was badly beaten up at remand custody and coerced to sign a document which was not read to him.  This is how Sri Lanka’s police and authorities were handling the case.  Thanks to the modern technology which came to his rescue, the first suspect would have been convicted for a crime which he had not committed even in his wildest dreams. 

Another horrendous case 

In post-war Jaffna, there was a similar case in which even politicians and senior police officers intervened to get the main suspect released.  The case which is known as S. Vithiya, another teenage school girl was gang raped while being videoed and eventually killed in cold blood.  When her aggrieved parents called over at the police station to report about their missing daughter, they were rudely turned away with the police saying that she would have eloped secretly with someone.  This rape and murder was pre-planned meticulously by the perpetrators, in a bid to make a ‘snub X rated film’ for export which would fetch a huge amount of money.  The mastermind who was employed in a foreign country, was assisted by one SSP and a politician to escape but eventually arrested at Colombo Airport before boarding a plane.  Although SSP was suspended and briefly in remand, he is at large now, pending court hearing.  But, it is not known whether the politician was ever implicated in the case.  

Common phenomenon in Sri Lanka

Whoever says it, child abuse is a common occurrence in Sri Lanka.  If a reader happens to read a daily newspaper any day of the year, he would certainly find a case of child abuse in news.  This raises a question as to whether a systematic and comprehensive mechanism exists in Sri Lanka to prevent child abuse.  In this context, Sri Lanka seems to be handling child abuse on a piecemeal basis and how the authorities have handled such cases previously, bear testimony to this logic.  In this sense, prevention of child abuse is a far cry as far as Sri Lanka is concerned.  In fact, this process should be multi-pronged if Sri Lanka is genuine in its effort.  The following components should be encompassed in a well-coordinated network if the country is to tackle the issue as warranted by the high volume of cases being reported daily. 

1. Awareness programs to educate the society of what child abuse is and how it could happen
2. Awareness programs at school level to educate children of their rights and prevent them from being abused in any manner
3. A hotline to report child abuse on any telecommunication network (This is available at present but its effectiveness is doubtful)
4. Obtaining assistance of religious places to educate children and parents of child abuses at home and places of worship
5. Provincial/ district level ‘Rapid Deployment Teams’ to curb child abuses on a routine and emergency basis
6. Prompt court action (Even setting up of an exclusive court for the purpose is prudent)
7. Professional post- traumatic treatment and rehabilitation for the victimized children
8. Proper system to release them back to the society after rehabilitation and ensued monitoring

Agony that makes tortured minds

As a result of child abuse, be it sexual abuse, intimidation, verbal abuse, corporal punishment, child labor…etc, the children undergo enormous agony and trauma which would be detrimental to their mental growth.  According to the subject of child psychology, this is the very state of the mind that makes criminals in the society when they become adults. Tortured minds are a bane to the civilized society Therefore, the state instruments have a huge responsibility to work it out in perfect coordination.  It is the need of the hour to modernize the National Child Protection Authority and Police Child and women bureau to meet the present day challenges in a highly professional framework.  In doing so, the authorities should put their act together in harnessing modern technology and best of qualified counsellors. And again, swift court hearings and severe punishments would serve as a deterrent. But, before everything, the country has to adopt a coherent national policy on child protection because children are our future. Therefore, it is up to the government to take the initiative in the first place.