Kerala POSCO report highlights lack of child safety in homes and schools

Cases of sexual abuse against children are increasing in Kerala, leaving them unsafe even in schools and homes. According to a recent report by the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, 21 percent of such cases were reported in children’s homes and 4 percent in schools. The alarming revelations prompted the state’s children’s rights commission to raise awareness of child abuse among parents, teachers and police officers. “Of the 4,663 cases analyzed under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses (POCSO) Act, 988 (21 per cent) occurred in children’s homes, 725 (15 per cent) in children’s homes, 725 (15 per cent) in children’s homes and 935 (20 per cent) in public places.” he said. The report stated that the crime occurred in schools in 173 cases, in vehicles in 139 cases, in various places in 146 cases, and in isolated areas in 166 cases. Additionally, 60 cases were reported in hotels, 72 at friends’ homes, 73 in religious institutions, 16 in hospitals and 8 percent in child care institutions. However, the report also stated that in 791 (17 percent) cases, information about the crime was not available. A total of 4,663 POCSO cases were reported across Kerala in 2023. The report stated that according to police data, the highest number of cases was recorded in Thiruvananthapuram district and the lowest number of cases was recorded in Pathanamthitta district.

Of the 4,663 POCSO cases reported during the year, 4,701 survived; This suggests that many cases involve more than one victim. “This highlights the need to educate children about the POCSO Act and child-friendly procedures as well as provide them with self-defence training,” the report said.

According to the figures, cases increase to 3,322 cases in 2021 and 4,583 cases in 2022. This number was 3,616 in 2019 and 3,030 in 2020. Of the 4,582 cases analyzed during the specified period, the Commission found the following: Out of 5,002 defendants, the relationship between the child victim and the defendant was classified as follows: 873 children’s acquaintances, 631 neighbors, 439 family members, 435 relatives, 477 friends, 692 were romantic partners, 210 were teachers, 305 were foreigners, 896 were undocumented or unidentified, and 36 were minibuses, buses or vans. automobile drivers. The report stated that these data underline that the safety, protection and well-being of children can only be effectively ensured if parents, relatives, society, police and government fulfill their responsibilities accurately and diligently. Of the 4,701 victims reported during the year, 3,972 (85 percent) were girls and 659 (14 percent) were boys. Gender information for 70 children (one percent) was not available because it was not included in the police report submitted to the Commission. The data highlights that girls are disproportionately vulnerable to sexual assault. Concerns were expressed about child survivors of sexual abuse, with 73 (two per cent) being between four and six years old, 423 (nine per cent) being five to nine years old, 1574 (39 per cent) being between 10 and 14 years old. and 1929 (48) (48) percent were between 15 and 18 years old. Two children of unknown or undocumented age (0.03 percent) were also victims. This highlights the need for parents and guardians to focus on improving children’s ability to respond to distressing situations and providing age-appropriate safety awareness. KV Manoj Kumar, Chairman of the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, said that the commission is now focusing on creating awareness about child abuse within the scope of the recommendations made in the report. “Since children are abused in their homes and public places, society has the responsibility to prevent this. To address this problem, we have trained Kudumbashree workers in seven districts on the Juvenile Justice Act, POCSO Act, child rights and good parenting in the rest of the state,” Kumar told PTI. “We have also provided awareness to child protection committee members, teachers, parents and police officials in block panchayats,” said Nazeer Chaliyam, former member of the Kerala State Commission for Protection of Child Rights. He said that the government should intervene in the issues highlighted by the commission in the report and take the necessary measures. “In accordance with Article 16 of the Commission for the Protection of Children’s Rights, the report must be submitted to the State Assembly along with the recommendations of the commission and the actions taken, so that the government can initiate the necessary measures to correct the problems. “He grew up in it,” he said.