Tender age traumatized
“Tenderness is in danger…Help! Help! Help! ” Not a new address this is to the long hibernating community. This addresses as a wake up call regarding the prevailing child sexual abuse. Children are the smile of a nation. They are everything from happiness to the future of nation. Sexuality is the concept which should not have been brought within the notice of a child in it’s tender years. Yet with the changing times, people with varying ideologies have highlighted this concept to the extreme. Rather than teaching a child about dreaming big, being undaunted in the spirits and about care-free play, human harshness has demeaned these very teachings. Mothers are afraid before their delivery as to how her baby would breathe free in this brutal world. Sexuality comes with maturity. But the pertinent question is – Is the Tender age- a new age for Maturity? Child sexual abuse includes touching and non-touching activity. It holds vital importance to the children of the present generation to know to the core about the sexual abuse in their age. Also the parents must be more aware. Child sexual abuse can occur in a variety of settings, including home, school, or work (in places where child labor is common). Very recently Delhi High Court said that Child sexual abuse is an ‘epidemic’. “Children who have suffered sexual abuse at the hands of the sexual perpetrators do not only suffer from physical pain but are also subjected to mental and emotional trauma. The results of child sex abuse are severe and far reaching,” Justice P S Teji said. “Child sexual abuse is one of the most pervasive social problems faced by our society. It’s impact is profound because of the sheer frequency with which it occurs and because of the trauma it brings into the lives of the children who have experience this crime. Child sexual abuse is an epidemic,” the court observed. The judge’s observations came as he dismissed a plea of an accused who sought quashing of an FIR lodged against him by a 12-year-old boy whom he had allegedly sexually abused three years ago. “An adult who engages in sexual activity with a child is performing a criminal and immoral act which never can be considered normal or socially acceptable behavior”– a press release of American Psychological Association in 1999 stated. Parent’s role is of vital importance. They have to actually train their kids against such abuse. It’s better to be an aware person than to be a victim. Therefore the parents need to be a guiding light to them. The children should be taught to recognize the abuse and to immediately revolt in such cases. Some preventive measures should be taken by the government to safeguard the kids. Awareness and security is the need of the hour. A few measures like placing a police volunteer in every corner where there are children for their help in case of distress would really be helpful. Or a constant vigilance on the activities of strangers and their dealings with the kids can be prompted. Special kinds of Education-cum-Seminar for both the children and the parents can be organised to make them aware about the miscreants of such an abuse. A public wide distribution of pamphlets educating on this issue can also be undertaken. These can be some kind of initiatives which I think should be acted upon. The responsibility lays on all of us to protect the ‘Tenderness from Trauma’ and make every child’s life care-free and happy. ——————– About the Author: This article is contributed by Vrinda Chauhan, our intern.