pril 10, 2007
World Briefing | Asia
India: Half of Children Sexually Abused, Study Says
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
More than half of children in India are subjected to sexual abuse, but most do not report the assaults to anyone, a new government study said. Parents and relatives were mostly found to be the perpetrators of child sexual abuse, said Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhury. Separately, nearly 65 percent of schoolchildren reported facing punishment beatings by teachers, mostly in government schools, the study said. The ministry’s study covered 13 of India’s 28 states and questioned 12,447 children in the 5-to-12 age group and 2,324 young adults. It covered different forms of child abuse, including physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as female child neglect. The study did not have a margin of sampling error. Last year, the government barred the employment of children under age 14 as domestic servants or in hotels, restaurants or small teashops because children were often subjected to physical violence, mental trauma and sexual abuse.
World Briefing | Asia
India: Half of Children Sexually Abused, Study Says
By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
More than half of children in India are subjected to sexual abuse, but most do not report the assaults to anyone, a new government study said. Parents and relatives were mostly found to be the perpetrators of child sexual abuse, said Women and Child Development Minister Renuka Chowdhury. Separately, nearly 65 percent of schoolchildren reported facing punishment beatings by teachers, mostly in government schools, the study said. The ministry’s study covered 13 of India’s 28 states and questioned 12,447 children in the 5-to-12 age group and 2,324 young adults. It covered different forms of child abuse, including physical, sexual and emotional abuse, as well as female child neglect. The study did not have a margin of sampling error. Last year, the government barred the employment of children under age 14 as domestic servants or in hotels, restaurants or small teashops because children were often subjected to physical violence, mental trauma and sexual abuse.
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Although, if most do not report their abuse, how do they know that more than half are sexually abused?
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