ASIA/INDIA - Homes, schools and orphanages: main areas at risk of sexual abuse of minors

New Delhi (Agenzia Fides) - In a statement released following the murder of a student in New Delhi in December 2012, the organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced the sexual abuse of minors as an alarming phenomenon that occurs predominantly in homes, schools and child care centers in India, compounded by the enforced silence of the young victims and the negligence of the police, the legal system and health services. According to the head for South Asia of Human Rights Watch, the system of protection in the country is inadequate, the Government does not guarantee the protection of children or of those who have the courage to report sexual abuse. Paradoxically, the risk of violence against children is particularly serious in orphanages and other care centers for children at risk. The mechanisms of control are inadequate and many private centers are not even registered, so the government does not have a list of all the institutions of the country, nor a list of children as guests. The promulgation in 2012 of the Law for the Protection of Children against Sexual crimes is a first step, because the new law states that any type of child sexual abuse constitues a crime. The Government must ensure the correct application of the law and other relevant policies, so that a network of surveillance for security is created. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 14/02/2013)