Only 4 percent of children abused by male strangers, shows report

"Say 'stop' to child abuse!"

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Main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) İzmir MP Özcan Purçu has submitted a Parliamentary inquiry with the aim of obtaining data that will help introducing protective-preventive policies against sexual abuse of children and develop service models.

In his Parliamentary inquiry, the MP has also cited data from the latest information shared by the İzmir Bar Association as well as the "Report on Monitoring Violations of Rights Against Sexually Abused Children" published by the UCİM association in November 2021.

Referring to the İzmir Bar Association's annual data, Purçu has said that "while the number of lawyers assigned by the İzmir Bar to child abuse cases was 1,078 in 2020, it increased to 1,470 in 2021.

In reference to the UCİM report based on the court cases that the association followed, Özcan Purçu has raised concerns that the age of children subjected to abuse dropped to 2 while 46.3 percent of the abused children were in the 5-10 age group. The report of the association has also shown that these children were abused at their houses, in educational institutions, at the houses of their neighbors or shopping environments and only 4 percent of the children were abused by complete male strangers.

"When the children who reported their duration of being subjected to abuse are considered, it turns out that 52 percent of them were systematically aggrieved for years," CHP's Purçu has underlined.

Further in his inquiry, Purçu has noted, "These findings show that besides preventive measures, children are in need to reporting mechanisms, accessible and customized help lines, physical and psychosocial assistance and protective measures so that they can be protected from sexual abuse. Moreover, the absence of a national database regarding child abuse leads to problems in offering suitable services and policies."

Purçu has then moved on to list his recommendations within this context, including observing the best interest of the child, conducting an effective investigation into offenses of sexual abuse of children and establishing a help and support line accessible to children 24/7.

The MP has also criticized the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) due to the 4th Judicial Package as "the first part of the 14-article legislative proposal, which passed the General Assembly of the Parliament at midnight on July 8, 2021, foresees seeking 'concrete evidence' to arrest a sexual abuse suspect by deeming 'strong evidence' no longer sufficient'." (EMK/SD)