Child Sexual Abuse: Management and prevention, and protection of children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act

Paedophilia—a sexual preference for the body scheme of pre-pubescent children—is defined as a disorder within the International Classification of Diseases (ICD) of the World Health Organization as well as within the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) of the American Psychiatric Association. Contrary to popular belief, not all sex offenders who target children are paedophiles, and not all paedophiles commit sexual offences. But quite obviously paedophilia is an emotionally charged and controversial topic, which might be an explanation for putting it out of focus within the healthcare system. Mental health professionals are mainly (and worldwide) not well trained in terms of assessment methods and intervention techniques available to develop and implement effective policies and practices. This presents an obstacle for prevention, in that proactive strategies to protect children from child sexual abuse and sexual exploitation by online offences, such as the consumption or distribution of child abusive images (so-called child pornography), which emphasises the internationally relevant dimension of the issue. The article will address key concerns and questions in dealing with this clinically relevant population, offer insights into a primary prevention approach developed in Germany, and discuss the situation on a European level.

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Right to Protection against Sexual Abuse and Exploitation

10.1093/oso/9780199470716.003.0005 ◽

2017 ◽

Author(s):

Asha Bajpai

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Sexual Exploitation ◽

Commercial Sexual Exploitation ◽

Child Victims ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Minor Children ◽

Marriage Laws ◽

Education Act ◽

International Instruments

Child sexual abuse and exploitation covers the sexual maltreatment of both children and young people. Part A deals with child sexual abuse (CSA) in India, its magnitude, and child sexual abuse in institutions. It deals with the national legal regime relating to CSA including the constitutional provisions, Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012 (POCSO). Law reform relating to some provisions in POCSO, child marriage laws, Right to Education Act and, and child victims and witnesses is recommended. Part B deals with commercial sexual exploitation and trafficking of minor children in the context of organized exploitation for commercial gain. The Indian laws dealing with commercial sexual exploitation and pornography are included. Important judgements and international instruments dealing with child sexual abuse and exploitation and the important role played by NGOs and government in dealing with cases of CSA and exploitation are included.

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Fifteen-minute consultation: Apparent vaginal bleeding in the pre-pubertal girl

Archives of Disease in Childhood - Education and Practice ◽

10.1136/archdischild-2018-316218 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. edpract-2018-316218

Author(s):

Julie-Ann Collins ◽

Julie-Ann Maney ◽

Alison Livingstone

Keyword(s):

Emergency Department ◽

Sexual Abuse ◽

Urinary Tract ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Genital Tract ◽

Vaginal Bleeding ◽

Systematic Approach ◽

Medical Examiner ◽

Normal Female ◽

Sexual Offences

A parent or carer’s observation of blood in a child’s nappy or underwear can be quite alarming for both parent and child and may indicate vaginal bleeding. At first glance, it may be difficult to ascertain whether the bleeding is from the skin, genital tract, urinary tract or anus. Confirmed vaginal bleeding in a pre-pubertal girl is rare but always abnormal and requires comprehensive assessment to determine the cause. Recognition of normal female pre-pubertal anatomy is essential to detect any abnormalities. Appropriate action should be taken according to findings on initial inspection of the ano-genital area. The possibility of child sexual abuse and the need for specialist paediatric sexual offences medicine examination by an FME (Forensic Medical Examiner) or specialist paediatrician should always be considered. This article offers a systematic approach to assessment in pre-pubertal girls with apparent vaginal bleeding which will benefit general paediatricians, emergency department practitioners and GPs.

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Predicting prolific live streaming of child sexual abuse

10.52922/ti78320 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Timothy Cubitt ◽

Sarah Napier

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

High Volume ◽

The Philippines ◽

Live Streaming ◽

Learning Approach ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Crime Type ◽

Machine Learning Approach ◽

Crime Types

Technologically enabled crime has proliferated in recent years. One such crime type is the live streaming of child sexual abuse (CSA). This study employs a machine learning approach to better understand the characteristics of Australians who engaged with known facilitators of CSA live streaming in the Philippines. This model demonstrated notable success in identifying the individuals who would engage in a high number of transactions with known facilitators. Individuals engaged in high-volume live streaming typically spent small amounts (under $55) at intervals of less than 20 days. Where prolific offenders had a criminal record, it was unlikely to consist of high-harm crime types, such as violent or sexual offences.

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Online child sexual exploitation material: A comparison from police data on men charged with child sexual exploitation material exclusively and men charged with contact child sexual abuse exclusively

Sexual Offending: Theory, Research, and Prevention ◽

10.5964/sotrap.4301 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 16 ◽

Author(s):

Samuel J. Nicol ◽

Danielle A. Harris ◽

Mark R. Kebbell ◽

James Ogilvie

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Sex Offenders ◽

Sex Offender ◽

Sexual Exploitation ◽

Community Supervision ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Treatment Protocols ◽

Child Sexual Exploitation ◽

Police Data

We do not know whether men who access Child Sexual Exploitation Material (CSEM) are contact child-sex offenders using technology - or a new and different type of child sex offender. This study compares men who were charged with Contact Child Sexual Abuse (CCSA) (n = 95) exclusively, and men who were charged with offences involving online CSEM (n = 99) exclusively. This is the first study of its kind in Australia, the first to divide participants into mutually exclusive offending type groups and to do this using police data. Logistic regression results indicated that CSEM offenders were significantly more likely to be older, more likely to be employed, have fewer criminal charges and supervision violations compared to CCSA offenders. The findings further highlighted the heterogeneity of those charged with child sexual offences based on offence typology. The identification of demographic, lifestyle and interpersonal characteristic differences between online CSEM and CCSA offenders’ questions the use of uniform approaches to community supervision and treatment protocols. The implications of these findings are discussed in light of an increased volume of people charged with CSEM offences.

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Reforms to the Legal Framework of Child Sexual Abuse in India: Legislative Band-Aids on Systemic Wounds

Statute Law Review ◽

10.1093/slr/hmaa007 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Shraddha Chaudhary

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Criminal Justice ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Criminal Justice System ◽

Death Penalty ◽

Criminal Law ◽

Justice System ◽

Legal Framework ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

The Government

Abstract The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2018 and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act, 2019 were purportedly aimed at strengthening the criminal justice system and deterring child sexual abuse. The article demonstrates how both legislations were reactionary, enacted without considering the evidence available on the lacunae in the system they sought to reform. It problematizes and critiques the new offences and enhanced sentences anchored in age-categorizations, the increased mandatory minimum sentences, the unenforceable timelines for investigation and trial, and the reinforcement of the link between fines imposed on the offender and compensation for the victim. It argues that the new legal framework will only exacerbate the implementation hurdles of the old framework, leading to poorer prosecution outcomes. The article also critiques the introduction of the death penalty for child rape. It is argued that the move could expose victims to mortal danger and will create a baffling situation for Special Courts adjudicating de facto consensual cases. While the government touts these legislations as proof of its hard stance on child sexual abuse, this article demonstrates that they were nothing more than political gimmicks, meant to distract from the conspicuous absence of any effort towards systemic change.

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‘This Pernicious Delusion’: Law, Medicine and Child Sexual Abuse1

Illicit and Unnatural Practices ◽

10.3366/edinburgh/9781474441193.003.0003 ◽

2018 ◽

pp. 30-50

Author(s):

Roger Davidson

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Local Community ◽

Medical Profession ◽

Child Victims ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Legal Proceedings ◽

Rescue Workers ◽

The Many ◽

The Impact

Chapter 3 examines child sexual abuse in early twentieth-century Scotland and the competing discourses surrounding its prosecution. At the heart of the study is a set of High Court cases of sexual assault upon children involving the aggravated offence of communicating VD, and the role played by the enduring superstition that ‘having connection with a virgin’ was a cure for the affliction. The chapter traces how this ‘pernicious delusion’ figured in medical testimony to legal proceedings and government enquiries throughout the period. It explores the impulses and constraints shaping the response of the law to ‘child outrage’. The impact of these cases on the campaign by feminists, rescue workers, and purity activists to amend the criminal law and the conduct of investigation and trial in respect to sexual offences against women is documented, as is the growing importance of forensic medicine in securing convictions. Continuing resistance is revealed within the medical profession and judiciary, as well as within the family and local community, to recognising child sexual abuse. The chapter illustrates the many layers of denial that operated to deny the child victims justice and the extent to which the legal process stigmatised them as sexual dangers to be institutionalised..

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Child sexual abuse in India: A review

INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ETHICS TRAUMA & VICTIMOLOGY ◽

10.18099/ijetv.v1i2.6816 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 1 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Dr. D S Bhullar ◽

Dr. P Mittal ◽

Dr. A Singla

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Health Care Professionals ◽

Sexual Abuse Prevention ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Term Care ◽

Abused Children ◽

Child Sexual Abuse Prevention ◽

Care And Support ◽

Child Friendly

The Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) 2012 is the first comprehensive law in India on child sexual abuse which expands the scope and range of forms of sexual offences, making reporting of abuse mandatory and defines guidelines for child friendly police and procedures. Doctors and health care professionals are often the first point of contact with abused children and their families. They play a key role in detecting abuse and providing immediate and longer term care and support to children and their families. Hence, they must have an overview of child sexual abuse – prevention, detection and management of abuse from a legal, medical and mental health angle.

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Pedophilia and Child Sexual Abuse: A Socio Legal Perspective

Christ University Law Journal ◽

10.12728/culj.2.4 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 2 (1) ◽

pp. 69-80

Author(s):

Gargi Whorra ◽

Sudipto Mitra

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Current Situation ◽

International Level ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

Judicial Decisions ◽

Legal Perspective ◽

Peculiar Nature

Societies worldwide have time and again turned a cold shoulder towards the heinous offence of child sexual abuse, until recent times when such hidden skeletons have walked out of closed cupboards, ranging from clergymen to the preposterously grotesque Nithari incident. This paper throws light on the growing foothold of child sexual abuse in the country by analysing it through varying dimensions. The paper seeks to examine the veracity of the situation of children, especially in a country like India, where the victim, irrespective of his innocence and fragility, loses his voice in the hullabaloo of the dogmas of the society. It is for such societal barriers that the rights of children did not see the light of the day till the year 2012. This article discusses the attempts made to check the child sexual abuse which have been made through legal initiatives and judicial decisions, both at the national and international level. The paper analyses the current situation in India with regard to child sexual abuse, while primarily drawing attention to the recent Protection of Children from Sexual offences Act, 2012 and pointing out the lacunae and shortcomings of the Act in dealing with the peculiar nature of the problem.

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Factors Influencing Non-Disclosure of Child Sexual Abuse Amongst Bapedi Tribe in Polokwane, Limpopo Province, South Africa

Global Journal of Health Science ◽

10.5539/gjhs.v11n12p175 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 11 (12) ◽

pp. 175

Author(s):

Rapholo Selelo Frank

Keyword(s):

Sexual Abuse ◽

Child Sexual Abuse ◽

Cultural Beliefs ◽

Influential Factors ◽

Limpopo Province ◽

Public Health Issue ◽

Global Public Health ◽

Structured Interviews ◽

Sexual Offences ◽

The Family

Child sexual abuse is a global public health issue calling the attention of practitioners, scholars and policy makers to address it. This study argues that children are being sexually abused both by family and non-family members, and such incidents are not always reported and/or disclosed due to various influential factors. This study was aimed at exploring and describing possible influential factors for the non-disclosure of child sexual abuse amongst Bapedi tribe. A qualitative approach with a descriptive phenomenological design was followed. Fifteen caregivers of children were purposively selected in order to pursue the aim of this study.  Data was collected through semi-structured interviews and analysed thematically through the help of Nvivo Software. The findings indicate that due to factors such as fear of the perpetrator, the practice of the spirit of ubuntu, socio-economic status of the family and relationship with the perpetrator, protecting the dignity of the family, fear of victimisation, fear of witchcraft, and cultural beliefs, child sexual abuse in the Bapedi tribe is an issue to be dealt with by families affected and if need be, traditional courts intervene in case the families disagree. It can therefore be concluded that there is a lack of information on the nastiness of child sexual offences against children amongst Bapedi tribe. Therefore, the Bapedi tribe must be empowered to disclose and/or report child sexual abuse and the implications of not doing so.

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