CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background To The Study

Child sexual abuse (CSA) has emerged as a human rights, public health and development emergency with global dimensions (WHO Regional Office for Africa, 2004).  The World Health Organization (WHO) defines CSA as “the involvement of a child in sexual activity that he or she does not fully comprehend and is unable to give informed consent to, or for which the child is not developmentally prepared, or else that violate the laws or social taboos of society. “The term CSA includes a range of activities like “intercourse, attempted intercourse, oral-genital contact, fondling of genitals directly or through clothing, exhibitionism or exposing children to adult sexual activity or pornography, and the use of the child for prostitution or pornography.”

One of the major achievements of the past quarter century has been the growing awareness of the prevalence and damaging psychological consequences of the sexual abuse of children. Sexual abuse of children is far from new. Historians have discovered that adults in elite households in fifteenth- and sixteenth-century Europe sometimes treated young children as sexual playthings.

In the United States, State child protection authorities substantiated 63,527 cases that involved childhood sexual abuse in 2010. A survey by the Centers for Disease Control of more than 17,000 adult Kaiser-network members, generally well educated and middle class, found that 16 percent of men and 25 percent of women said they had experienced childhood sexual abuse (Steven Mintz, 2012). And yet, it is remarkable how recently the sexual abuse of children was not taken seriously. Not until 1974, when Congress passed the Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act, were states required to establish reporting requirements in suspected cases.

In the years between 1981 and 1995, thirty-seven studies pertaining to Child Sexual Abuse, (subsequently referred to as CSA) have been published mostly in the United States. Between these dates, a total of 25,367 subjects participated in ongoing research into this traumatic experience (Paolucci, Genuis, & Violato, 2001).  From the research, the prevalence of CSA appears to be alarming.  For example, in the general population the prevalence of CSA is between 15% and 20%, with an estimated prevalence for children and adults falling in a range between 4% and 50% (Paolucci et al., 2001).  Another research study indicated that in the United States the prevalence of CSA is approximately 15%, or 150,000 children who experience some form of CSA each year. Of these, 50% involve vaginal and/or anal penetration (Nurcombe, 2000). And yet, it is remarkable how recently the sexual abuse of children was not taken seriously.

In its 2013 report India’s Hell Holes: Child Sexual Assault in Juvenile Justice Homes, the Asian Centre for Human Rights said that sexual offences against children in India have reached epidemic proportion. The report stated that more than 48,000 child rape cases were recorded from 2001 to 2011 and that India saw an increase of 336% of child rape cases from 2001 (2,113 cases) to 2011 (7,112 cases). According to a 2007 study by the Indian Government of nearly 12,500 children from across India, 53% of children – boys and girls equally – were victims of sexual abuse (Ludovica Iaccino, 2014).

Child sexual abuse (CSA) has emerged as a human rights, public health and development emergency with global dimensions. In sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), available information suggests that it is alarming.  However, actual knowledge on the issue remains inadequate to inform development of policies and programmes. Nevertheless, data from different regions of SSA suggest high prevalence of all the forms of CSA – non-contact, contact and penetrative abuse.  Regarding the magnitude of noncontact CSA, levels of sexual harassment were found to be as high as 67% (Bernard A. 2009). High rates of contact abuse were found across the region, including rates for FGM/C of between a low of 5% in some countries to a high of 90% in others (Population Reference Bureau. 2010); rates of fondling (sexual touching) of between 25% in Ethiopia and 47% in Uganda were found (Polonko K, Naeem N, Adams N and Adinolfi, A.  2010). The review also found high rates of penetrative sexual abuse.  Estimates found include that between 5% (Lalor, K.  2004) and 69% of all children had experienced penetrative abuse (Kamatsiko VV.  2006).

While studies have been carried out through sub-saharan Africa on child sexual abuse, most of these studies have been centered in Southern Africa where child sexual abuse is prevalent in countries like South Africa and Zimbabwe.

In Cameroon child sexual abuse is a growing public health concern with serious consequences. Researchers from the Cameroon branch of the international NGO; The School as an Instrument of Peace, or EIP in French, say figures show the scale of the problem nationwide. In Cameroon, watchdog organizations say about 40 percent of school-going children are sexually abused (Joe DeCapua, 2011).

The UNICEF reports that 11% of adult women were married before the age of 15 at national level; in the North region, more than twice as many were married before 15 (24%) and 48% of adolescent girls aged 15–17 have experienced physical or sexual abuse at least once.

1.2 Statement Of The Problem

Information on child sexual abuse in Cameroon is fragmented and inconsistent.  Little systematic analysis has been possible to adequately inform prevention and response efforts.  As Lalor (2004) noted, there are a relatively large number of published studies on CSA in South Africa, but little from the rest of the African continent. In a literature review spanning the period 1980 to 2003, Pitche noted that CSA occurs in all the regions of Africa, noting the relative wealth of information from Southern Africa and dearth of information from Central Africa and from West Africa (except Nigeria, Senegal and Togo). Moreover, the existing research only covered some types of CSA.  For example, little information is available on the sexual abuse of boys, grooming of children, and rape of children by close members of their families.

With the current instability in Cameroon and security concerns, there have been reports of sexual assault on girls by some perpetrators and it is clear to see that a problem that already exists has been heightened by the country’s insecurity. In a society where child sexual abuse discussions are rare and mostly frowned upon as a taboo, Buea poses some risk factors for CSA. This includes Buea being a town for educational advancement that sees many children below the age of 18 come for studies. In most cases these children leave alone without a parent or with a Guidant. Children living without either parent (foster children) are 10 times more likely to be sexually abused than children that live with both biological parents. Children who live with a single parent that has a live-in partner are at the highest risk; they are 20 times more likely to be victims of child sexual abuse than children living with both biological parents.

In conclusion, it is important to assess child sexual abuse in Buea, effectively investigate the perpetrators of CSA and their locations of victimizations and in that depth establish the implications of this global phenomenon.

1.3 Objectives Of The Study

1.3.1Main Objective

The main purpose of this study is to assess child sexual abuse in Buea, South West Region of Cameroon.

1.3.2 Specific Objectives

1. To assess the populations’ knowledge and attitude with respect to CSA in Buea, South West Region of Cameroon.
2. To map out the perpetrators of CSA and locations of victimization in Buea
3. To determine the population’s knowledge about child protection services and assess service usage by CSA survivors