Sexual Abuse of Children In Yekka Sub-City of Addis Ababa
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Date
2009-06
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Publisher
AAU
Abstract
In developing nations like Ethiopia many children are vulnerahle to different tY/Je.1 ofa!JII.les.
The sexual abuse 0/ children is said to have been the most ignored and unuwure type of child
ahuse. II is also the mosl under reported/arm of ahuse due to its complex noture. Stlldying the
contrihuting/actors may help to deal Il'ith how to alleviate the pl'!ihlelli.
The overall objective o/Ihis research is to assess the socio-culturol and economic factors that
contrihute to such social evil. The research is designed to ansvver questions such as: what
Iuc/ors contribute to the sexual ahuse of children? What are the characteristic f eatures of
perpetrators? Which social settings contribute much to the prohlem '! What are the major tv/WI'
oj' .Iexllal abuses perpetwted in the area'! What are the reuwns IiII' IInder re/)()rtil1p. oj the
sexual abuse of the children ?
The methods employed /01" data collection were document revie'w, in-depth interview. FGD,
ond questionnaire administration. The participants of this stlldv were thirt\' two victim
children.
The findings of this study reveal that the most contrihuting /octon to the .\e.'wul ohllse oj'
children in the area were poverty, lack of awareness about the problem within the community
in general and the family in particular, the living situation of the children, and the cliitural
t({hoo on tolking ahout sexuality The /indings/ifl'ther re veul that children Ivho corne .Ii
'oJl1 the
countryside either to live with relatives or to be employed as d0111estic 111uids were the most
vlllnel'Clble groups,
The majority of the perpetrators were those who were engaged in low paid jobs or they were
johless. Most of them have experienced bad habils. However, individuals with heller income
und those who were .fi"ee Fom bad hahits were also liJUnd to he ohu.ler.1 of the children The
lindings also reveal that the measures taken hy the perpetrotors ufier the ohllse. the negotil'e
otlitlldcs of the community towards victim children, and the prohlem on reporting S()111ej(mns
of abuses such as incest (Ind anal insertion helped the sex1lal ahllsc of the children to st({y
hidden. Ther~fore, such/actors exposed the children to repeated sexual abuse.