Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a violation of
the fundamental rights of a child and is deeply rooted in harmful gender norms.
It is exacerbated by poverty, insecurity, displacement, drug abuse, conflicts,
natural disasters and mental health problems. Survivors of CSA suffer psychological trauma,
fear, pain, self-harm, guild, emotional and physical harm, post- traumatic
distress, abusive behavior and sexually transmitted diseases.
According to Uganda Police Annual crime rate
report (2021), a total of 14,570 cases of Defilement cases were reported to
Police compared to 14,230 cases reported in 2020, giving an increase of 2.3%
and this is highly attributed to the Covid-19 induced lockdown which
considerably contributed to the escalating cases of teenage pregnancies and
child marriage which are the worst forms of child sexual abuse, a total of
354,736 cases of teenage pregnancy were registered in 2020 and 196,499 in the
first six months of 2021 (UNICEF UGANDA).
There has been a noticeable
increase in the number of reported cases of child abuse since the lockdown in
Uganda. The Uganda Child Help Line run by Ministry of Gender, Labor and
Social Development March 2020 report revealed that sexual abuse was the third
most reported form of child abuse contributing 20.1% of all the cases (98% of
the victims being girls and 17% of the perpetrators being family members,
including fathers, cousins and uncles).
Ending child sexual abuse will require long
term, sustainable action across many different sectors. A robust legal and
policy framework for preventing the vice and supporting children’s needs should
be the cornerstone of government efforts to address the practice.
Parliamentarians are uniquely positioned to
shape, advance and exercise a leadership role in establishing and implementing
a robust legal and policy framework for preventing child sexual abuse and
ensuring it is effectively enforced by relevant actors and institutions within
their constituencies and beyond.
Parliamentarians can work to advocate for high -level review of national
laws relating to sexual abuse, strengthen and enforce national laws that
prevent and prohibit child sexual abuse in line with international and regional
human rights standards and ensure legislation related to child sexual abuse is
accompanied by proper training of the judiciary, police, child protection
officials, civil society, media and any other actors. In this way, Parliamentarians have a major
role to play by placing child protection on top of the political agenda and
calling on government to adopt a multi-sectoral approach to accelerate change
and end the harmful practice.
Parliamentarians can also capitalize on their
role as public figures to change misconceptions about violence against children
for example raising awareness about child marriage in the media, working with
relevant ministries and encouraging multi-sectoral collaboration on child
protection including at the sub-national, national, regional and international
levels. They can guarantee the voices of citizens are heard, particularly
speaking for the girl child, in order to mobilize political will and commitment
to end all forms of violence against children.
The Ugandan Parliament has made tremendous
efforts towards addressing child sexual abuse including passing the Sexual
Offences Bill 2019 which was not assented into law by the President. The bill
is critical in preventing violence against children; it is the first
legislation that fully addresses the issue of child marriage which is rampant
in the country.
UNICEF UGANDA estimates 5 million child
brides, of these 1.3 million girls are married before age 15.
If passed into law, the Sexual Offences Bill will
offer legal protection to survivors and those that are a risk for child sexual
abuse. The bill will also protect
children against notions of capitalism that are push factors for child
marriage, child prostitution, sex prostitution and teenage pregnancy which are
the worst forms of child sexual abuse. Going forward, we understand that legislation
alone is not enough to end child sexual abuse but it’s a starting point to move
towards ending violence against children.
Joy for Children- Uganda will continue to
engage members of parliament, support processes for the enactment of the sexual
offences bill and enhance legislative advocacy to end child sexual abuse in
Uganda.
