Child Sexual Abuse Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words

Child Sexual Abuse - Essay Example Thousands of crimes including homicide, rape, felony, robbery, fraud, embezzlement and others are committed in almost every region of the world on daily basis; child rape and molestation is also included the list the most challenging crimes committed on the face of the earth leaving indelible and incurable affect and impact behind it. Theorists define various reasons behind child sexual abuse, which has direct relationship with structural-functional and social conflict theoretical frameworks. Before embarking upon the topic under analysis, it would be advisable to define child rape. Child rape simply means the sexual victimization and harassment of innocent children and pre-pubertal adolescents generally at the hands of their seniors or adult members of society. It includes rape of minor and defenseless girls and boys, who have not reached the age of puberty. â€Å"Abuse of a child is anything that causes injury or puts the child in danger of physical injury, which can be physical, mental, sexual, or emotional.† (International child abuse network) However, sexual abuse includes touching of child’s private parts, incest, exhibitionism, stripping, pederasty and intercourse etc. The reports reveal that thousands of children become victim of rape and sexual assaults, though only few cases are reported at the police department. â€Å"The National Victim Center estimates that only 16 percent of rapes in the United States are reported each year. This low reporting rate can be attributed in part to the cold, impersonal reporting process†. and the ra pe victim's fear of appearing at the trial of the suspect.† (The legal Dictionary) The reasons behind not reporting the cases on the part of children include the sense of shame and humiliation, fear of punishment from family and threats from the offender; and hurt of ego and of prestige, lack of resources, absence of evidence and fear of enmity as well. Thus, a large proportion of the mishaps took place in the life of children remains concealed from the knowledge of society and law enforcing agencies. â€Å"There were 103,297 substantiated cases in 2003 across Canada (excluding Quebec), a 125% increase in documented child abuse since 1998. This increase is considered a result of improvements in reporting and investigative methods for child abuse, as well as enhanced awareness and understanding of child abuse, not necessarily an increase in the amount of abuse.† (Canadian Incidence Study of Reported Child Abuse and Neglect) It has aptly been observed that sexual assaults and harassment adversely tell upon the weak and feeble nerves of innocent children, and it takes several years in their complete convalescence from the trauma caused in the wake of the mishap took place in their life. Sexual attacks not only inflict physical harm to the victims, but also destroy the soul and mind of the poor children. Consequently, they are unable to come out of the shock after many months and even years after the rape. â€Å"Severe child abuse, are re-experienced later in life on a sensory level, due to the fact that those brain and psychological systems responsible for directing the encoding and early organization and processing of explicit, narrative memory material may be flooded by overwhelming emotional input during severe abuse or trauma -- resulting in less integrated, primarily sensory recollections upon exposure to trauma-reminiscent stimuli.† (Briere, 2002:4) The studies also exhibit that a large majority of the victims of child sexual abuse turns out to be