“From vulnerability to violence”: sexual victimization as a challenge faced by street children. A case study of urban district Zanzibar

BackgroundThe life and health of street children is becoming a global concern. Street children are vulnerable to a variety of problems including physical, psychological and sexual exploitations as well as social isolation. Therefore, it was the purpose of this study to point out the experience of sexual and physical exploitation and its determinant factors among street children in Addis Ababa, the capital city of Ethiopia.MethodologyA phenomenological qualitative method was conducted from March to June 2016 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Data were collected from street children by focus group discussion (FGD) and in-depth interview. Open code was used to analyze data. The transcribed note was translated. Following this coding was done. Based on a coding book, major themes and main categories were developed and analyzed.ResultThe study has explored the life experience of street children in the city. Deaths of parents/unhealthy relationship of extended families forced them be on a street. Thus, flee to street to search for work was the main reason for joining to a street. Street children are vulnerable to sexual and physical exploitations on a daily basis. For street children, street is the world characterized by misery deprivation, physical, verbal and sexual abuse and become daily victims of violence. There is no safe place for the children of on-street. Most street children are involved in all types of sex; heterosexual, bisexual, homosexual and group sex are common among themselves and out siders. They are involved highly in transactional sex for survival. Drug use, stress and depression are common experiences. Thus, they were socially isolated. The main challenges of living on a street are lack of basic needs, social isolation, lack of safety and security and being out of school are the common problems these vulnerable groups are facing.ConclusionsStreet children are at high risk of sexual and physical exploitation. Interventions targeting integration and reunion with families, reduction of physical and sexual exploitation, access to education, mental health promotion and reduction of drug use behavior should be taken in to considerations.

Sexual harassment is a common, yet understudied form of peer victimization experienced by adolescents during a critical period in the development of sexual identity. Adverse sexual experiences early in life (e.g., child sexual abuse) can increase risk of future sexual assault victimization; however, it is unclear as to whether sexual harassment victimization is also a risk factor for sexual assault. We examined the prospective association between peer sexual harassment and experiencing sexual victimization in the following year among a community sample of 13-15-year-old adolescents (N = 800, 57% female) from the northeastern USA. We also examined whether risky alcohol use and delinquency mediated the association between sexual harassment and sexual assault victimization, as well as whether the paths differed by gender. Results indicated that sexual harassment victimization prospectively predicted later sexual victimization for both girls and boys. Using a parallel mediation path model, we determined that for girls, sexual harassment victimization predicted both risky alcohol use and delinquency, but only risky alcohol use was predictive of sexual victimization. For boys, sexual harassment victimization predicted delinquency but not risky alcohol use. Risky alcohol use was not associated with sexual victimization for boys. Findings indicate that sexual harassment victimization increases risk of later sexual victimization in adolescence, but the pathways differ by gender.

EDITORS' NOTE: Howz serious and widespread a problem is sexual harassment in our universities? What means will effectively diminish its incidence without violating the rights of individuals? Each of thefollowing essays answers one of these two questions. In the first, Bernice Lott, Mary Ellen Reilly, and Dale Howard describe the results of a 1979 survey that examined a sample of the entire University of Rhode Island population. Its purpose was to determine how many of the respondents in the sample group had personal knowledge of or had experienced any form of sexual assault, intimidation, or insult; how they had responded to assault; and their beliefs about harassment in general. In the second essay, Judith Berman Brandenburg delineates a response to the problem worked out at Yale University: the establishment of a grievance procedure administered through a specially selected board. The process of this honest search for answers uncovers other questions: Do we have a definition of sexual harassment upon which most people will agree? Is power thefactor that transforms what may be cajolery into harassment? If so, power in what forms? Do these forms make the problem invulnerable to any solution? With these essays we open a dialogue on such questions. We invite your letters in response, in the hope that through the exchange we canfurther advance feminist efforts to analyze-and to overcome-this pernicious form of sexual injustice.

The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse was created as a result of efforts to ensure, at least on European soil, an optimal normative framework for the protection of children from this form of crime. By signing and ratifying it, member states undertook to adapt their national legislation to the principles and standards of protection of children’s sexual integrity established by this convention. In addition to a series of provisions related to various areas and measures that should be taken in order to prevent sexual abuse and exploitation of children, provide assistance to victims and raise the awareness of the social community about this criminality, the provisions related to substantive criminal law are particularly significant because they determine legal framework for the actions of all protection subjects. Republika Srpska, with the reform of the criminal legislation in 2017, implemented these provisions of the Council of Europe Convention on the protection of children from sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. In addition, a part of the provisions was implemented by the Law on protection and treatment of children and minors in criminal proceedings and the Law on a special register of persons legally convicted of criminal acts of sexual abuse and exploitation of children. This created a good normative basis for the protection of children from this form of crime, the real effects of which can only be obtained through adequate application of them by judicial institutions.

BackgroundSexual abuse among street children is a problem that renders a burden of sexually transmitted diseases, HIV infection, and early pregnancy. Literature shows that globally 95 million children experience sexual abuse with 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 7 boys exposed to sexual abuse before 18 years of age in Malawi. Malawi adopted the World Health Organization guidelines for providing emergency health services for victims of sexual abuse, which include HIV Post Exposure Prophylaxis (PEP) and Emergency Contraceptive Pills (ECP) within 72 h of exposure, Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) treatment, and psychosocial services. However, there are challenges associated with the services that limit access and utilization among street children. This study explored the factors associated with access and utilization of sexual abuse emergency healthcare services among street children in Zomba.MethodologyThis was a cross-sectional phenomenological qualitative study conducted in Zomba City from 2022 to 2023 using in-depth and key informant interviews. We purposively selected street children between 10 to 17 years who have been exposed to sexual abuse on the streets and social actors working with street children. The study employed a thematic analysis approach.ResultsThe study found that street children did not utilize sexual abuse emergency health services. The major factors associated with utilization included the knowledge of sexual abuse, its associated health risks and sexual abuse emergency health services, and perceptions of utilizing sexual abuse emergency health services. The barriers to utilization of sexual abuse emergency health services included perceived shame, fear, discrimination, prolonged treatment process, and attitude of the health service providers.ConclusionSexual abuse and its health risks continue to be a challenge among street children. The absence of adequate connections and secure environments for street children to report sexual abuse and seek help without facing judgment has created significant obstacles for them in accessing sexual abuse emergency health services. To curb this challenge it is crucial for successful interventions to specifically address the health needs of street children and involve them in the decision-making processes related to their interventions.

The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse stipulates the obligation of member states to adopt the necessary legislative and other measures to combat all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children and to protect children. In addition to a series of measures related to the prevention and raising awareness of citizens about the unacceptability of any behavior aimed at the sexual exploitation and abuse of children, measures to criminalize such behavior and protect and support victims of violence, the convention also stipulates the obligation of states to establish records of perpetrators of criminal acts of sexual abuse and exploitation of children. Bosnia and Herzegovina, as a signatory to this convention, has undertaken the obligation to implement its provisions into its legal system. However, due to the shared-parallel jurisdiction in the field of criminal legislation between the state and its entities, the protection of human sexual integrity falls within the jurisdiction of the entities, and the obligation to implement the Lanzarote Convention falls on the entities.

Sexual abuse and exploitation of unaccompanied migrant children in Greece: Identifying risk factors and gaps in services during the European migration crisis

Gender-based violence in refugee settings

The article considers international legal acts to prevent violent crimes against sexual freedom and sexual integrity of the child. An analysis of international legal acts and legislation of other states shows that today almost all countries of the world have norms, to some extent related to the criminal law protection of public morality. The existence of these norms is due to the need for state control over prostitution, the circulation of pornographic products, as well as the existence of obligations at the level of interstate relations. It is noted that in international practice there are no generally accepted standards of legal regulation of the market of sexual services - in each country special legal approaches are introduced, taking into account national traditions. At the same time, in most European countries, against the background of loyalty to persons engaged in prostitution, stricter sanctions have been introduced than in Ukraine for sexual violence against children. The urgency of the topic is due to the fact that the expansion of the process of European integration of Ukraine requires the implementation of standards of protection of human rights and freedoms recognized in the law enforcement practice. This is especially true of children who, because of psychological, social and personal immaturity, dependence on adults, lack of life experience and many other factors, are least protected from the dangers, including sexual abuse (according to UNICEF, every fifth child in Europe becomes sexually abused). World-wide humanitarian approaches to the protection of the sexual integrity of the child are enshrined in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child 1924 p., And subsequently in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights 1948 p., The Declaration of the Rights of the Child 1959, the 1989 Convention on the Rights of the Child (ratified in Ukraine 1991 p. .), The Council of Europe Convention on the Protection of Children against Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse. In accordance with international standards, in addition to the punishment of the perpetrators, work should be done with those who have committed acts of a sexual nature, to prevent new violations, as well as to rehabilitate victims. Unlike the EU criminal law doctrine, US federal law addresses the issue of criminal protection of child sexual abuse more broadly, including in the “child sexual abuse” group of acts that have more than direct but also the indirect link with the sexual motivation of the guilty person. These actions are divided into two types by American criminologists: adult and child sexual intercourse (incest) and extramarital sex (pedophilia). At the level of law, most U.S. states punish not only the person who provides sexual services but also the person who uses them (so-called "patronage"). This principle of the American lawmaker seems to be quite relevant because it allows to create evidence base, prevent crime.

Adolescence is a period of self-actualization which includes physical, emotional, intellectual and social changes that will affect the development process of an individual . At this time individuals especially street children are at risk of experiencing behavioral disorders, delinquency and occurrence of violence, both as victims or as perpetrators of violence . This condition tends to make street children behave negatively and not obey with the rules. In addition, street children are also very vulnerable to crime and violence and even sexual exploitation such as a sexual harassment, abuse, becoming victims of human trafficking and even objects for pornography . In this situation will certainly cause psychosocial problems that will affect the relations with the environment in their life. This research aims to see the psychosocial description of street children, especially at adolescents. The type of this research is a simple description with 38 street children's in Pekanbaru City as a respondents. The results showed that most street children (55.3%) have a positive psychosocial, It is expected that Social Service Unit in Pekanbaru will provide skills training to street children as to increase the positive psychosocial aspects of street children.

New Horizons for the Journal: Familiar Landscapes in Child Protection

This article aims to analyze the exploitation practices of street children carried out by their families. Children who receive human rights protection under international legal instruments and Indonesian national law, do not have the power to exercise control and pressure from their families to carry out activities as street children. This study uses an empirical approach with data collection through interviews and observations. The results of the study showed that they became street children due to poverty, social influences of the environment, and parental divorce or domestic violence. In the next stage, they experience physical, psychological, emotional, and social disorders, while society stigmatizes and discriminates against them as delinquents which in turn can interfere with their mentality to grow up as a child. These children have been deprived of their rights and marginalized as a child, so it is necessary to innovate in serious service and handling from state actors and non-state actors. Any practice of child exploitation that may consist of criminal, sexual, financial, spiritual, criminal, sexual, financial, spiritual, or forced labor must be minimized and abolished while still paying attention to ethical, humane, and professional rules.

Children are a gift and responsibility given by God, thus they need to be protected and respected in their basic rights. Child protection is enshrined in the 1945 Constitution and the United Nations child rights convention. Children are the support for the future of the nation and family. Protection for children should commence from within the womb until they reach the age of 18. It is the responsibility of parents, families, and the community to protect the rights of children, while the state and government need to provide facilities and access for the growth and development of children. Child exploitation, such as begging, is a serious problem. The level of poverty is one of the main causes of exploitation. The state and government have an obligation to protect children from exploitation. However, there are still many street children who are vulnerable to exploitation, including physical, economic and sexual exploitation. This research uses a normative legal and empirical juridical approach. In this research, we will explore child protection arrangements in Indonesia, the factors that cause child exploitation, and their impact on children's welfare, with a case study of Decision Number 623/PID.SUS/2016/PN.MLG. With these efforts, we can better understand child protection and the impact of exploitation on child welfare in Indonesia.

Driving Improvements in Child Protection and Safeguarding Practice

Sexual assault is a troubling epidemic that plagues college campuses across the United States, and is often proceeded by drinking by the perpetrator and/or victim. The goal of this study was to examine the effect of level of intoxication, history of alcohol-related blackouts, and childhood sexual abuse (CSA) on the likelihood of being a victim or perpetrator of coercive sexual activities. Participants (N = 2,244) were part of a 6-year longitudinal study which explored alcohol use and associated behavioral risks during college. A subsample (N = 1,423) completed 30 days of daily diary surveys across four years of college. Participants provided daily reports of their alcohol consumption, sexual coercion perpetration, and sexual coercion victimization. Using hierarchical linear models, results indicated that increases in daily estimated blood alcohol concentration (eBAC) were associated with a greater likelihood of being a victim and a perpetrator of sexual coercion. In addition, main effects of CSA and history of blackouts predicted a greater likelihood of being coerced into sexual activity, but blackouts were not associated with being a perpetrator. A significant interaction between blackouts and event-level eBAC indicated that individuals with a history of blackouts had a greater likelihood of sexual coercion victimization relative to those without prior blackouts. Finally, having a history of blackouts and CSA was predictive of a lower likelihood of being a perpetrator of sexual coercion at higher eBACs relative to those without a history of blackouts. Thus, prevention efforts should integrate the impact of blackouts and CSA on sexual coercion victimization and perpetration. (PsycINFO Database Record