Protecting Children from Abuse
August 11, 2009
Children may go through various forms of abuse; physical abuse due to strain and stress, exertion, difficulty in coping with hectic schedule, extreme forms of punishment, beating etc. They may have to face emotional abuse like being called names, insulted, bullied by classmates, fearful of failure, poor self image etc. Sexual abuse may also be reported among children due to crooked activities by household help, strangers, tutors, neighbours or family members too.
Sexual abuse is interlinked with physical and emotional abuse because the child suffers physical discomfort or pain and emotional conditions like confusion, shame, guilt, fear, panic, trauma due to this kind of abuse. Parents need to leave kids with others for reasons of employment; however, this may put children in a vulnerable position, as there is a lot of trust and confidence placed on this person who will be taking care of the child.
When you employ a household help or person to specifically take care of the child, obtain more knowledge about the person by talking to them, asking about their family, where they stay, past experience with employers etc. If possible ask for the contact number of the past employers so that you can obtain a true and fair idea about the kind of person he/she is. Do a little background check.
When you leave children with family members, relatives, neighbours, uncles etc do not take their behavior for granted. People do not reveal their true self to everyone and may have perverted thinking and abusive habits. Ask your child how he/she feels staying with the person. If children express their dislike, ask them about the reason in a polite, round about manner so that they do not feel threatened while disclosing the truth.
If children complain about certain behavior among relatives or neighbours do not hush up the child or ask them to not speak ill about the person. This person may actually pose a threat to the child. Do not take family/social ties for granted and presume that the child will be completely safe with known people too.
Be alert for signs of physical/sexual violation, or complaints of pain or sudden emotionally changes in the child (for example, withdrawn behavior, panic on mention of the caretaker, fear on seeing the person etc).
Comments
Got something to say? Join the conversation and leave a comment below.