Focus on child abuse

For three days starting on Monday March 11, organisations and individuals working in the filed of child abuse are gathering in Parliament to provide evidence on the sexual abuse of children. The hearings follow last year's high number of child rapes that were reported in the media.

Health-e have compiled a number of audio reports relating to issues of child abuse - available from their web site: http://www.health-e.org.za (requires a suitable Media player to listen to the audio)

Stories include: Parliament hears evidence on child sexual abuse http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20020311

Seeing the signs of child abuse Child abusers are not people who sit in a dirty park somewhere -clinical social workers. The sexual abuse of a child often happens over a long time before signs that a child is experiencing trauma are picked up. In this focus on child abuse, we find out what behavioural patterns to watch out for in a child to realise if they have been abused. We also hear what impact sexual abuse has on children, what help is at hand and what encourages this abuse on our children to flourish. http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20020312

School reports 30 rapes among pupils Yanelisa Ngqongwa is a 12-year old Grade 6 pupil at Mthawelanga Primary School, in Ekuphum'leni, a section of Khayelitsha township in the Western Cape. It's a Thursday morning and she and a group of 14 other pupils are attending a workshop run by their teacher and a social worker from a child rights organisation Ilitha Labantu, on child abuse. Yanelisa is a vocal participant in the workshop. After a while, she stands up and tells the group that she is a rape survivor. http://www.health-e.org.za/view.php3?id=20020313