Violence against children occurs everywhere in the world everyday.
Each year an estimated 40 million children are abused; 150 million girls and 73 million boys have experienced forced sexual intercourse and other forms of sexual violence; up to 140 million girls and women have undergone some form of female genital mutilation; 126 million children are involved in the most hazardous forms of child labour and over 1.2 million children are victims of trafficking.
Although research in India on the subject is limited, violence against children is prevalent and widespread. In 2007, the Ministry of Women and Child Development released a study on Child Abuse in the country. The study found that 2 out of every 3 children reported being physically abused. Following abuse at home, schools were the next largest environment where abuse was reported in government and municipal schools. Most children did not report the matter to anyone.
A Plan India study on impact of corporal punishment confirmed that corporal punishment was a regular feature in the lives of children in schools. Children reported nearly 33 different types pf punishment. The more severe of these included children being severely kicked, tying up with rope to chairs/poles followed by beatings, and being assigned physically strenuous labour. Surprisingly or perhaps not so- many children felt that it was alright to be beaten.
Why Does Violence Happens
The existence of power inequity in society leading to discrimination on the basis of caste, gender, is a major cause of violence. Discrimination against children on the basis of their caste often leads to the m being exposed to situations of both verbal and physical abuse in schools.
Societal acceptance of violence as a form of discipline is another contributory factor leading to violence against children. Parents, teachers and community members feel that they themselves were beaten and turned out right therefore it is alright to use physical force on their children thus, perpetuating the cycle of violence. Children also accept it as inevitable and a justified form of punishment.
There is a lack of awareness about the issue of children’s rights among adults and children specifically their right to protection and participation. Given this scenario, children seldom have a voice and even if they are abused, the matter is not looked upon as a rights violation or reported.
The absence of a uniform law banning corporal punishment in schools and the lack of a reporting and redressal mechanism increases the vulnerability of children to violence in educational environment.
Ineffective and poor educational environment in schools, such as higher teacher student ratio, poor teacher training, the pressure to teach a huge and mostly irrelevant syllabi leads to frustration among teachers which find expression in the form of physical and verbal abuse against children.
Read more about the Learn Without Fear Campaign. Download Plan India’s Learn Without Fear Report (4.3 MB), a 70 page booklet with detailed sections on corporal punishment, sexual violence, and bullying in Indian schools, along with sections on tackling violence in schools and Plan’s call to action.
