Sexual abuse victims need support

THE media, over the years, have highlighted the issue of sexual abuse, especially within families, through its reports mainly from court.
Despite the numerous reports made in the past couple of months, we are certain there are many more cases went unreported.
We need a multi-faceted approach to tackle this menace.
We need a better framework for helping victims and engendering a more conducive environment that will encourage victims of such crimes to report such abuses.
We should not blame the victims but the perpetrators.
We need to provide victims with psychological help they need to overcome the trauma.
Family members should stand up for the victims and encourage them to report these crimes.
Family members should not protect the perpetrators.
Family members should name and shame those who commit such crimes and not worry about feeling embarrassed because the only person in the wrong is the person committing the crime.
But if there is a cover up, then the family members doing so should be blamed as well.
Over the past couple of weeks, there were numerous news reports of children in PNG being sexually assaulted by fathers, grandfathers, brothers, cousins and stepfathers.
What sort of father in his right frame of mind would sexually abuse his biological daughter?
Of all people that a daughter can turn to and trust is her father.
But by committing the offence, he betrayed that trust and, instead, satisfied his sick sexual hunger on a vulnerable child.
Reading the news articles and reports was indeed stomach churning and made one feel nauseated.
Clearly something is wrong and we should be brave enough to admit that something has to be done.
It is most disturbing for the girls who look up to their fathers, grandfathers, brothers and uncles for protection, love and care but end up being assaulted by them.
Most of the time, family members are complicit in concealing such incidents for fear of embarrassment and due to economic factors.
Besides the physical trauma that is caused to a young child, the mental trauma is also equally or possibly more painful.
The psychological effects of being assaulted by someone one looks up to as a protector will causing lasting damage.
Victims of sexual crimes tend to suffer from low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts and sometimes even see themselves as being in the wrong and all of this is compounded by the fact that the perpetrator is a family member.
The government recently implemented a more complete legal architecture to deal with such sexual crimes against children.
With a dedicated police unit as well to deal with such crimes, victims now should be encouraged to report such crimes because the law is in the right place.
It is heart breaking to see family members sexually assault their children and abuse their children and forever destroy their lives.
We believe there should be no justification for such outrageous and wicked acts.
Men with ravenous sexual desires that knows no boundaries to the extent of sexually preying on their own children or anyone else’s that matter should face the full wrath of the law.