Child sexual abuse is a serious problem in Pakistan that causes psychological, physical, and social harm. According to a recent report, over 1,300 children in Pakistan experienced some form of sexual abuse from January to June 2019. Children from low socioeconomic backgrounds, with disabilities, or in unstable family situations are most at risk. Sexual abuse has short and long term effects on victims' mental health, behavior, and development. Combating this issue requires efforts on individual, community, and national levels through education, counseling, legal reforms, and supporting survivors.

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SEXUAL CHILD ABUSINGIN PAKISTAN
SEXUAL CHILD ABUSING IN PAKISTAN
INTRODUCTION
Children are the assets of our society and how we bring them up determines the future
of our country. It is the shared responsibility of the entire society to raise healthy children and
in this respect; I believe we as a nation are falling dismally. Our children today face multiple
problem such as child labour, physical, sexual and verbal abuse. Perhaps the most serious of
these issues is sexual abuse an-impermissible crime which does not receive its due share of
attention from social or legal circle in Pakistan. Culture and religious sensitivities create a
hushed aura about this topic, and this article aims to break that and to raise voice against it.
Our silence and general inaction amplifies the psychological, physical and social
consequences that sexual abuse has for victims. Every time I watch or read a news report on
child sexual abuse, my mind grappled with why and how anybody could commit such a
heinous act. We need to examine the issue of sexual abuse, how to prevent it and how help
heal those who have suffered it.
According to NCTSN (2009) “National child traumatic stress network” child sexual
abuse is an interaction between a child and an adult or another child in which the child is used
for the sexual stimulation of the perpetrator or an observer. In addition, sexual abuse includes
touching and non-touching actions. Touching action may involve touching of vagina, penis,
buttocks and sexual intercourse. Non touching action may include looking at child with naked
body and pornography.

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EPIDIMIOLOGY
Horrific details entailing incidents of child sexual abuse in Pakistan have emerged in
a report compiled by the non-governmental organization (NGO) Sahil recently.
As per the report, as many as 1300 children have had to face sexual abuse of some
kind in the last six months in Pakistan (January to June 2019). It went on to add that as many
as 729 girls and 575 boys suffered sexual abuse of some kind between Jan-Jun 2019. The
report revealed that there had been 652 report cases in Punjab, 458 in Sindh, 32 in
Baluchistan, whereas, 51 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Meanwhile, reports of sexual abuse
pertaining to underage children amounted to 90 in Islamabad, 18 in Azad Kashmir and 3 in
Gilgit-Baltistan. The report further mentioned that as many as 50 children became victims of
sexual abuse in Lahore alone. It was also revealed that as many as 12 minor girls and boys
suffered sexual abuse in Madrasahs.
In 2017, the WHO estimated that up to 1 billion minors between the ages of 2 and 17
years of age have endured violence either physical, emotional, or sexual. Sexual abuse (from
groping to rape), according to some UNICEF estimates from 2014, affected over 120 million
children, representing the highest number of victims. In 2017, the same UN organization
reported that in 38 low and middle income countries, almost 17 million adult women
admitted having a forced sexual relationship during their childhood.
In Europe 2013, the WHO estimated that almost 18 million children had been victims
of sexual abuse in Europe: 13.4% of all girls and 5.7% of all boys.
In India, between 2001 and 2011, the ”Asian Center for Human Rights” reported a
total of 48.338 cases of the rape of minors, with an increase of 336%: from 2,113 cases in
2001, to 7,112 cases in 2011.

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SEXUAL CHILD ABUSINGIN PAKISTAN
In the United States, official government data reports that over 700 million
children are victims of violence and abuse every year.
In South Africa the results of research conducted by the Center for Justice and Crime
Prevention revealed that in 2016, 1 out of 3 South Africans, male or female, was at risk of
sexual abuse before reaching the age of 17. According to that study, the first of its kind on the
national scale in South Africa, 784.967 teenagers between the ages of 15 and 17 had already
experienced sexual abuse. The victims in this case are prevalently boys. Not even 1/3 had
reported the violence to the police.
Risk FACTOR FOR SEXUAL ABUSE
Low socioeconomic conditions although all social classes are affected by sexual
abuse but low socioeconomic at higher risk of sexual abuse. Children in low socioeconomic
status household are 3 times as likely to be identified as a victim of child abuse (sedlack,et.
Al. 2010). Low socioeconomic condition includes poverty, unemployment and literacy. In
poor families where the adult are occupied full time working odd jobs, children are left
unsupervised.
Children are around and play in their neighbors where they may fall victim to sexual
predators. Additionally. Poor people may send their children out to work or to beg on the
streets, which is again not safe. Children from uneducated background are not provided with
knowledge of sexuality in early developmental stages, and this lack of awareness mean that
they are not warned of potential sexual abusers.
CHILDREN WITH DISABILITIES

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SEXUAL CHILD ABUSINGIN PAKISTAN
Children with intellectual, physical and mental disabilities are more vulnerable to
sexual abuse as compared to other children. ‘’Children with disabilities are three times more
likely than children without them to be victims of sexual abuse.” (Smith & Harrell, 2013).
“The prevalence of sexual abuse in children with intellectual and mental disabilities 11.5% of
children with intellectual disabilities had been abused while only 1.5% of children without
intellectual disabilities’’ (Kim, 2010).
There are several reason behind the sexual abuse of children with disabilities. Firstly
these children are more dependent on caregiver for their daily life activities do so, parents
leave them in different institutions. It increases interaction between child and caregiver which
increases chances of sexual abuse of children.
Secondly, disabled children are not able to communicate with adult properly due to
lack of verbal communication. Owing to this, children may be used multiple times, but
cannot express the trauma they have been subjected to.
Finally, children with disabilities have a lower understanding of sexuality and the
caregiver have also lacked confidence to provide sexual knowledge to such children.
FAMILY DYNAMICS
Families with a history of sexual abuse, living with non-biological father and poor
family bonding are also at the risk of sexual abuse. In all these family structure is a very
important risk factor. In 70% to 80% of cases of child sexual abuse the perpetrators has a
‘familial relationship’ with the abused child (sammut, 2014).
The abuser is mostly a man, he could be a family friend, neighbor, relative or father.
Children who live with their step father or single-parent are more likely to victim of sexual
abuse than children who live with their biological father. Children who live with a single

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parent are 20 times more likely to be victim of sexual abuse than children living with both
biological parents. (Sedlack,et, et. al 2010).
GENDER, AGE AND ETHNICITY
The probability of sexual abuse exists in both male and female of all ages and
ethnicity. Gender is a major factor in sexual abuse. Many researchers have showed that girls
are at higher risk than boys. Sexual abuse prevalence rates are 1.5 to 3 times greater for
female than male (Back & Lips, 1998).
Similarly, age is also significant factor. Children who are of age 11-15 are more often
victim of sexual abuse. Ethnicity and race are important factor to determine sexual abuse.
African, American and Hispanic ethnicity children are at nearly twice the risk of sexual abuse
than non-Hispanic (sedlack,et, al. 2010).
INDICATOR OF CHILD SEXUAL ABUSE;
INDICATORS are the sign and symptoms that appear in a person who has been
sexually abused. There are three main indicators which we can use to identify a child who has
been sexually abused, these are physical, psychological/behavioral and social indicators.
PHYSICAL INDICATORS
Physical indicators such as injuries in the genital area, bruises, infection pain (in
gentile, stomach and head, infection and bleeding. Sometimes a child show inappropriate
sexual behavior like frequent touching og genital parts. According to WHO 2013 unexplained
genital injury, vaginal and penil discharge in girls and boys, infection in vagina of girls,
bedwetting beyond the usual age, pain during voiding and defecation, infection in urinary
tract, STIs are some of the physical indicators.

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SEXUAL CHILD ABUSINGIN PAKISTAN
SOCIAL INDICATORS
These are the sign and symptoms of social dysfunction in a child. The victim becomes
isolated from friends, family members and other community members. He /she doesn’t
participate in social activities like games and social gathering.
They have poor social boundaries, loneliness, and difficulty in making intimate
relationship. When the children fail to cope with sexual abuse they adopt negative coping
style such as using drugs, smoking and alcohol in later life. These negative adopting style
badly effect the concentration level of a person which ultimately impacts the academic
performance.
Psychological/ behavioralindicators
Sexual abuse has a devastating psychological impact on the child. It creates short term
and long term psychological and mental problem that vary from person to person and
situation to situation. Women who experienced familial abuse reported higher current level of
depression and anxiety when thinking about the abuse (hall & hall, 2011).
The short and long term problem includes depression. Anxiety. Stress, aggression,
guilt, self-blaming, powerlessness, low self-esteem, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and
phobias. In all these, depression is common and long term problem. Depression has been
found to be the most common long term symptoms among survivor. (hall & hall 2011).
Sexual abuser survivor are susceptible to suicidal thoughts, anorexia and problem
with body image, they may feel ugly or be dissatisfied with their appearance. Victim
experience irritability, anger, withdraw, guilt, and faer.chilhood sexual abuse also affects a
person’s later life, they fail in building trust relationship, fear of intimacy and difficulty in
making personal boundaries.

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RECOMMENDATION
Child sexual abuse is minimized by taking action on individual level, community
level and national level. On individual level everyone should raise the voice against sexual
abuse. They should be given awareness about causes and indicators of sexual abuse so that
they able to help the survivors. Children should be taught self-protection skills, and too never
allow any person to touch their private parts etc.
Similarly, on a community level there should be awareness session to support the
people to fight against such people who are involving such criminal activities. There should
be institution and NGO,S that legally fight cases of child sexual abuse. Likewise, government
should make such laws and policies so that immediate action should be taken against
criminals.
Besides this, psychotherapy and counseling are also important in helping survivors
through the process of recovery. In psychotherapy, both individual and group therapy are
useful for example trauma-focused on cognitive, behavioral and familial aspect of a person.
According to child welfare information gateway 2012. ‘’it is designed to reduce negative
emotional and behavioral responses following child sexual abuse’’. In the same way there
should be one-on-one counseling of individual and parents (biological and non-biological).
CONCLUSION
In a nutshell, child sexual abuse is sexual contact between a child and perpetrators.
Low socio economics status, gender, age, family and child with disabilities are some risk
factors of sexual abuse. It affects the victim’s social behavior, physical and mental health.
Certain strategies on individual community and nation level can help decrease the rate of

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sexual abuse. Psychotherapy and counseling are two key channels of support for a child who
has fallen prey to sexual abuse.
REFERRENCES
 national child traumatic stress network. (2009, april). Retrieved from caring for kids
what parents need to know: http://ncstn.org
 above 1300 child sexual abuse cases reported in pakistan within six month. (2019).
Retrieved from The news: http://www.thenews.com.pk
 The protection of minor in the church. (2019). Retrieved from child abuse on the
global level-PBC : http://www.pbc2019.org

 andrea j.sedlak,monica basena,angela green,karla mcpherson,lan petta spencer li.
(2009;2010). Forth national incidence study of child abuse and neglect . Retrieved
from http://www.acf.hhs.gov
 American counseling association. (2011). Retrieved from The long term effects of
childhood sexual abuse: http://www.counselling.org