Sexual exploitation is not okay. There is no other better way to put this. IT’S JUST NOT OKAY. The last thing you want to see, know or hear is a child in a brothel or going through abuse. Unfortunately, it does happen to them, from the people they trust most. It is hard to believe for many that people who the children think love them and believe them can actually do such horrendous things to them. In most of the cases, it is often from a person who is older, who lures the child with gifts or money, threatens or blackmails to have sex or conduct sexual acts for them or for others.
There are many children who became victims of sexual exploitation and are unable to get professional help. Surprisingly, Facebook messenger (and many other social media platforms) has become a source for many sex offenders to lure children; as most of the children are studying online during the pandemic, it has become an advantage for the predators.
Child sexual exploitation is a form of sexual abuse where offenders use their power (physical, financial, or emotional) over a child or young person or a false identity, to sexually or emotionally abuse them. It is a real threat to young children and kids especially during this lockdown and it is heart-wrenching even to imagine what those little children have been going through, unable to resist, threatened, and scared to open up to family, most of the time even to their own mother and father. They are silently going through that pain all alone.
1 in 3 girls and 1 in 5 boys have experienced some form of sexual abuse in Kenya, and less than 10% have managed to get professional help.
Identifying the signs
It is hard to identify signs of exploitation, as most of the victims are afraid to share what they have been going through. That being said, it might be helpful to identify some red flags which include but are not limited to:
- A child being in close relationship with a much older person
- A person paying more attention to the child than usual
- A child being scared of the person
- Accidentally or pretending to encourage nudity or inappropriate touches like wrestling or tickling
- Controlling a child by threatening them
Abuse may not always be physical; it may manifest in other forms like emotional abuse, grooming, neglect, family violence, sexual behavior in underage children and student sexual offending, which leads to trauma and these effects of trauma in children can be many and life-threatening.
For many survivors, it takes years to be rescued and to get help from authorities, and most of them are scared for their lives. Read our previous post about Survivors of Child Trafficking, to know more about how they face traumatic issues to transition into healthy lives again.
Sadly, reports in 2020 suggested that there has been a spike in these cases during COVID-19. Overall 120 million girls have been abused and forced to have sex globally. Girls in developing countries are particularly more at risk – they are forced to perform sexual acts. If they get pregnant, they are forced again to have an abortion and many times end up having complications during the process, and some may die as well.
Much needed action must be taken by governments to enforce stricter laws and counselling, as well as keeping a close eye on known child sex offenders before releasing them into the world again. This would greatly help limit the sexual exploitation of children as the number is soaring day by day.
What we can do
- Taking preventive measures and creating more secure privacy settings while children use the online platforms.
- Building a healthy relationship with children and making them feel comfortable sharing things rather than provoking them or dismissing them.
- Most of the cases were when the child was neglected. So helping them to heal from past trauma by giving them much needed care and attention.
- Educating and raising awareness in the families, explaining about consent and sex education in schools.
- Identifying the signs and listening to potential victims, comforting them rather than asking them questions on how it happened; our foundation has been doing from the past few years with the help of many generous people and donations.
The lives of street children are even more challenging in terms of risk of exploitation, as many are an easy target being more vulnerable to illicit and illegal activities. We at the Evie Grace Foundation are trying to make a change and provide the means to guide them towards a better future.
Together we can make a change in the lives of these children, help and eliminate the sexual exploitation of children and child trafficking.
References
https://www.education.vic.gov.au/school/teachers/health/childprotection/Pages/identify.aspx
https://theconversation.com/laws-against-child-sexual-abuse-exist-in-kenya-but-there-are-gaps-124649
https://www.myprincegeorgenow.com/125864/child-sexual-exploitation-on-the-rise-in-pg/
Written by: Chandini Balla
