Children are weak to sexual abuse and people with disabilities are at even higher threat on account of their cognitive or communication challenges in expressing what has occurred to them, says Women Centre for Change govt director Loh Cheng Kooi.
“So it may take a longer time before a child with a disability (depending on the type of disability and its severity) is able to express that sexual abuse is happening and for the caregiver to help. In some instances, the child may not even know that what is happening is sexual abuse as often the perpetrator “befriends” the kid (i.e grooming) earlier than the sexual assault then takes place,” she says.
To increase consciousness concerning the vulnerabilities of children with disabilites to sexual abuse, WCC has come out with a storybook, Sara Says No, written by Dr Prema Devaraj, former WCC Programme Consultant, with enter from educators who’re working with children with disabilities. Illustrations are by Faizati Mohd Ali and the art work by C Square Sdn Bhd.
“Sexual abuse of children with disabilities is rarely talked about. By producing this storybook, we hope to raise awareness on their vulnerabilities and create the space for discussion on this topic. The message in Sara’s story is that sexual abuse can happen to any child, anywhere and very often it is by a perpetrator whom the child knows. It is important for the parent or caregiver to be constantly alert for signs indicating that something is wrong. Good communication with a disabled child is crucial in ensuring their well-being,” says Loh.
“Furthermore, WCC hopes that should a victim of sexual abuse read Sara’s story, they might better understand what happened to them and seek the help they need,” she provides.
Sara Says No is at present out there on-line solely. Funded by Yayasan Hasanah underneath a particular grant, WCC hopes to translate the storybook into 5 different languages (Malay, Chinese, Tamil, Kadazan and Iban) to make sure a wider attain to oldsters and educators throughout Malaysia.
“They can read this storybook to children of appropriate age for them to understand how sexual abuse happens and how the child can seek help,” says Loh, including that the e-book reached over 55,000 views simply sooner or later after it was launched on-line final week.
The on-line storybook is uploaded in WCC’s social media (fb, twitter, instagram) and is obtainable on their web site (www.wccpenang.org/books/). The translations into 5 completely different languages might be uploaded by May 2022.
Although WCC handles only some circumstances of kid sexual abuse involving children with disabilities yearly, Loh says that they’ve seen how tough it’s for a disabled baby and his or her caregiver to report the incident.
“It is also very challenging for the police investigating officer who is conducting the investigation. When the child has difficulty in articulating the incident(s) or expressing his or herself, we need to involve other specialists, for example a child psychiatrist, sign language interpreter or the care giver, to support the child and also help explain the incident to the investigating officer so that he or she is in a better position to investigate the case,” explains Loh.
Sara Says No isn’t the primary storybook that the NGO has produced to boost consciousness on safeguarding children from violence. In 2020, WCC produced two different on-line storybooks: Lisa and her Secret and Yusri and his Secret.
Both the storybooks have been nicely acquired, with over two million individuals viewing/studying them on their social media platforms, prompting them to embark on Sara Says No.
“Reports on child sexual abuse are on the rise but many parents are still unaware of the risk of this danger. This storybook featuring Sara, a child with cerebral palsy, is expanding WCC’s outreach to raise awareness on sexual abuse to children with disabilities as well as their carers.
“Children need to be taught about good touch and bad touch and what to do (i.e to tell someone) when something goes wrong. However not all children may be able to do this.
“The responsibility of protecting a child lies with the adult. Adults must therefore step up, take responsibility and play a critical role in preventing sexual abuse in the lives of children. If sexual abuse has taken place then the adult must act quickly to put an immediate stop to the abuse,” says Loh.
“Sexual abuse can scar a child for the rest of his or her life. No child should ever have to experience this,” she concludes.
