By Francis Nizeyimana
Minister of State for Youth and Children Affairs Hon. Nyirabashitsi Sarah Mateke has said the rising number of defilement cases in Kisoro district is alarming and needs to be managed before it is too late.
Hon. Nyirabashitsi, who was the chief guest, made the remarks yesterday during the celebrations of the international day of the girl child in Mayor’s Gardens.
Nyirabashitsi, who is also the Kisoro district Woman Member of Parliament said it is quite disturbing that nearly every week, a case of defilement is reported to authorities.
She admitted being hounded by different people on social media who are concerned that the vice is going un-checked, right under her nose.
“It really hurts me when you’re a minister in charge of children and it is in your district where defilement is reported every week, Nyirabashitsi said
She further stressed that the Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social development in collaboration with the Courts of law and the Uganda Police are developing a strategy to ensure the vice is nipped in the bud.
Sources from the Kisoro district Probation office revealed that more than 40 cases of defilement have been registered in the three months.
Most recent and shocking case involved a high-profile Politician and businessman who was romantically involved with a minor. Their relationship resulted in a tragic end after the male adult coerced the minor to abort resulting in serious complications.
Kisoro district Senior Community Development Officer Sam Niyonzima also castigated the Police and lawyers for changing the face of defilement cases into trafficking cases.
According to Niyonzima, this creates room for such perpetrators to escape justice while families of the affected girl child remain traumatized and cheated.
Why do Men sexually exploit minors?
Some adults sexually abuse a child to feel the power and control they don’t feel in their relationships with other adults.
The common tool used by those who sexually abuse minors is known as grooming.
The abuser uses manipulative behaviors to gain access to a potential victim, coerce them to agree to the abuse, and reduce the risk of being caught.
Grooming can take place online or in-person. It’s usually employed by a family member or someone else in the victim’s circle of trust, such as a coach, teacher, youth group leader or others who naturally have some interaction with the victim.
How does it Work?
Abusers often observe possible victims and select them based on ease of access to them or their perceived vulnerability.
They will attempt to physically or emotionally separate a victim from those protecting them and often seek out positions in which they have contact with minors.
Sexual predators attempt to gain trust of a potential victim through gifts, attention, sharing “secrets” and other means to make them feel that they have a caring relationship.
They train the would- be- victim to keep the relationship secret.
Abusers will often start to touch a victim in ways that appear harmless, such as hugging, wrestling and tickling, and later escalate to increasingly more sexual contact, such as massages or showering together. Abusers may also show the victim pornography or discuss sexual topics with them, to introduce the idea of sexual contact.
Possible Solutions:
Parents, care takers and educators need to pay more attention to children, observing change in behavior. This can be achieved by having regular conversations that do not necessarily involve such strictness.
This allows minors to openly express their thoughts. If their thinking is wrong, lovingly correct and reprimand and where it is good thinking, affirm and encourage.
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