Have you ever wondered what happens to children who have been abused as they were growing up? As a media practitioner for a little over two decades, I always imagine how I would feel, if, as a little child, I happen to find myself being abused. I doubt if I would be able to erase that vision of horror from my mind.
An Abuse is a violation of an individual’s human and civil rights by any other person or persons. It takes different forms. Each form of abuse has to be taken seriously as one often leads to another. Abuse may consist of a single act or repeated acts.
It may be psychological, emotional, physical, sexual, discriminatory, institutional and spiritual. It may be an act of neglect or an omission to act. It can occur in any relationship and may result in significant harm to, or exploitation of, the person subjected to it. In reality, the impact is often multifaceted. An abuse is essentially an injustice, simplicita!
In 2018, the Ghana Catholic Bishops’ Conference (GCBC) issued a Child Protection Policy to guide the Church in Ghana, a very laudable initiative which seeks to improve, sensitise and enact measures that would eliminate child abuse and prevent its occurrence.
The pain caused by the crime of child abuse by people cannot be described and cured. Importantly, it marks the victims and their loved ones for life. Aware of this situation, the Catholic Church has over the years, invited her Clergy, Religious, Laity and all persons working with children entrusted to their care, to abide by guidelines that protect children under eighteen years and vulnerable adults, who, like children cannot give full consent of what they are doing or what is done to and with them.
In part of the preamble of the Policy by the GCBC, it states that “Pope Francis has directed Bishops’ Conferences and Conferences of Major Superiors all over the world to draw up policies that will protect children against abuse by those who are ministering to them.”
“Such policies will also help those who minister to minors to know how to minister to them in the most appropriate manner. They will also help all to know which steps to take when an abuse happens: how to report the case, how it is to be investigated and judged and what type of support is to be offered to the survivor of the abuse and the family and community and to the one who has perpetrated the abuse and to the community and family,” the Policy noted.
I am elated to know that this Child Protection Policy is binding for all Church personnel working in Ghana with children and around children and vulnerable adults.
I am also happy that the Child Protection Policy of the Catholic Church in Ghana, offers the new guidelines for Priests, Religious and Lay People working with children and vulnerable adults in the name of the Catholic Church in Ghana.
But, the multi-million dollar questions are: Do Church leaders (Priests, Parish Pastoral Councillors) and the laity in general know about the Policy? Do Committees especially that of Education and Youth really know about the Policy? How are they making good use of the Policy if they know? Do they really understand the content of the Policy? How are leaders handling abuse cases in their Churches and Parishes, if there any at all? How effective do Church Leaders know about procedures in handling cases of child abuse especially sexual abuse?
What about our Schools, how are Local Managers, School Management Committees/School Governing Boards, headmasters and headmistresses, teachers and Parent-Teacher Associations handling such cases if there are any at all?
The focus of this piece is on child sexual abuse which is alarming and raises serious social, pastoral and spiritual concerns that demand a strong prophetic voice to address and fight for its extermination.
As explicitly stated in the GCBC Policy, a sexual abuse is when a person involves a child or another person in sexual activities to which the person has not consented or does not truly comprehend and so cannot give informed consent; or where the perpetrator is in a position of trust, power or authority and uses this to override or overcome lack of consent.
It includes any act of a sexual nature, with or without physical contact, committed by an individual without the consent of the person targeted or in certain cases, such as that of children (or when consent could never be considered valid) by an emotional manipulation or by blackmail, threat or constraint.
The perpetrator seeks to subject another person to his/ her own desires. Indeed, it can significantly impact negatively on an individual’s mental health, sometimes resulting in self-harming behaviours, sexualized behaviour, depression and low self-esteem.
In addition to the emotional impact, there is a possibility of sexually transmitted infections, including syphilis and HIV-AIDS. Sexual abuse is an injustice caused by the misuse of power or trust and is an assault on fundamental human rights, principally to the person’s physical, psychological, spiritual integrity and his/her safety.
In is an undeniable fact that child sexual abuse happens in many places, at home, in the school, in the Church, but is often muted for obvious reasons. This violation of the rights of the child is often done by relatives/guardians, teachers, health workers, religious leaders and practitioners, caregivers and strangers.
In the recent past in some countries in the world and even Ghana we hear in the news how the abuse of children has indeed landed the Church in a very difficult situation and has cost the Church a lot of money, but has especially affected the credibility of the Gospel proclaimed to the people of God.
Most sexually abused and neglected children never come to the attention of government or Church authorities probably because no physical signs of harm are seen on them. The trauma that they go through may prevent them and adults from seeking help.
Children and adolescents, who have been sexually abused, suffer a range of psychological and behavioural problems including anxiety, fear, sexual dysfunction and withdrawal.
These effects vary depending upon the circumstances of the abuse and the child’s developmental stage but may include regressive behaviour, sleeplessness, eating disorders, and problems with performance at School among others.
Since the negative effects of child sexual abuse can affect the victim for many years culminating into adulthood, I think parents have the arduous task of always giving guidance to their children.
It is well known that adults, who have been sexually abused when they were children, commonly express depression, high level of anxiety which sometimes results in self-destructive behaviours, such as alcoholism and drug abuse. It may also result in anxiety attacks and insomnia which we should not encourage.
Sadly, because perpetrators of sexual violence towards children are experts at manipulating their victims into silence through fear, shame, confusion, intimidation, and the threat of violence, it is estimated globally that only about 10% of victims of child sexual abuse ever report their victimization.
According to the Catholic Bishops’ Policy, “about 33% of children in Ghana are said to have been sexually abused” which includes “rape, molestation, touching of private parts, watching pornography, the use of inappropriate language, and dirty jokes.” Boys are abused as much as girls by people very close to them.
Openly, I will advice children and youth who report little or no psychological distress from the abuse, to express their true emotions to their parents or any close relative or a Church leader so that the perpetrators could be arrested and prosecuted.
In the area of the Church, I am of the opinion that pastoral support is urgently needed to be offered to the victims/survivors and to the perpetrators also.
Ghanaians and Christians alike are reminded of the Criminal and Other Offences Act 1960 [Act 29] also known as The Criminal Code in Section 69A which defines Child Abuse as when a child’s rights are violated. This can happen through murder, manslaughter, genocide, abortion and different forms of sexual exploitations.
As a reminder to all, the penalties for the sexual offences are the following:
- Rape-where a person has sex with a female of not less than 18 without her consent. The punishment is a term of imprisonment not less than five (5) years and not more than 25 years.
- Defilement-where a person has sex with a child under 16 years whether with or without the child’s consent. The punishment is a term of imprisonment not less than seven (7) and not more than 25 years.
- Indecent assault-where a person without the consent of the other forcibly makes a sexual bodily contact or sexually violates the body of the other. The punishment is a term of imprisonment of not less than 6 months.
- Unnatural carnal knowledge-where a person has unnatural sex of another person of not less than 16 without his/ her consent. The punishment is a term of imprisonment of not less than five (5) years and not more than 25 years.
- Unnatural carnal knowledge of another person of not less than 16 years but with that person’s person. The punishment is a term of imprisonment of not more than three (3) years.
- Incest– a male of not less than 16 years has sex with a female whom the male knows to be his granddaughter, daughter, sister, mother or grandmother. The punishment is not less than 3 years imprisonment and not more than 25 years.
I happy that in a bid to ensure the pastoral theme for 2024 focusing on children is achieved as directed by the Metropolitan Archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Accra, the Most Rev. John Bonaventure Kwofie, the Pastoral Office of the Archdiocese has put together a document to guide Priests and Animators to mark the year dedicated to children on the theme: “Helping Children to seek Christ: From Discovery to Discipleship.” John 12:21 – “We wish to see Jesus”
For the Church and her Schools to prevent abuse from happening, it is important to educate its members, education stakeholders and other people who interact with children about abuse and its dynamics. This education should also include the importance of respecting boundaries (pastoral, emotional, social, etc.) in the work with children and vulnerable adults.
In my view, children both in the Church and in our Church Schools should be helped to recognize abuse when they occur and how to speak about / report them to adults. They should be educated and trained to be aware of the danger of the many abuses that surround them. They should be empowered to speak out, and break the silence of abuses against them or their friends.
Children should also be educated and empowered to see and recognize signs employed by offenders on vulnerable children; to protect themselves, to recognize that the abuse is not their fault, and also to report these offenders or predators. The education should also ensure that children become peer educators to themselves.
All pastoral agents, Priests, Religious, Catechists, Animators, Pastoral Councillors, Youth Leaders, Societal leaders, Local Managers, Catholic heads and teachers, parents etc. and all who are involved with children in Church and School activities need to realize that Child Protection from abuse is part and parcel of their service and that failure in this area is a grave offence especially if they themselves are the perpetrators.
They should be helped to realize what constitutes a safe environment for children and vulnerable adults and what is unsafe. As part of awareness raising, I call on the Catholic Church in Ghana to rise up to the challenge regarding the exploitation of the vulnerable in society specially minors.
There is therefore an urgent need to encourage people to speak up and bring to the fore the social vices that are taking place within the church and outside, so that together with government, civil society Organizations and other stakeholders, the issues could be addressed.
Let us remember that no amount of investment in education will yield the desired result if the Church, parents and stakeholders in education do not secure the safety of their children in the Church, at home and in the School.
By Damian Avevor
