Child Abuse and Neglect in Saudi Arabia - Research Paper Example

Child Abuse and Neglect has been prevalent globally irrespective of the wealth and cultural status of the countries. United Nations’ approach to alleviate the problem has been focussing the worst hit areas like Middle East although Industrialised countries like United States are not spared from the enigma. In this context I have attempted to analyse the following research report: “Child Abuse and Neglect in Saudi Arabia: Journey of recognition to implementation of National Prevention Strategies” by Majid Al-Eissa and Maha Al-Muneef in the Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect, Vol. 34. Issue. 1 (28-33). Elsevier Ltd. The paper is a special issue on the eve of 20th Anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of Children (CRC) 1989-2009 (Part2). The research report has been published by Elsevier ltd. The paper addresses the awareness in KSA about child abuse and neglect. Since mandatory reporting is enforced at government hospitals and health care centres, the details of CAN cases are mostly concerned about physical abuse. The demographic statistics spreading from 2000 to 2008 reveal parents to be major perpetrators. The three sub groups of year-wise statistics show that specific cases of emotional abuse and neglect were in rise during the later phase of the research. Prevention strategies primarily focus health care of child victims as the awareness is at the initial stage although abuse and neglect have been prevalent quite a long before at its heightened gravity. Introduction: - The definition of Child Neglect pronounced by the Supreme Court of Arizona is the fittest of the situation. It spells Child Neglect to be the cause of Child Abuse. It reads, “Child Neglect is a condition in which a care taker responsible for the child, either deliberately or by extraordinary inattentiveness, permits the child to experience avoidable present sufferings and/ or fails to provide one or more ingredients generally deemed essential for developing a person’s physical, intellectual and emotional capacities. The Supreme Court has stupendously added that when parents could not afford to meet their children’s needs and protect their children from harm; society has a responsibility to intervene to protect the health and welfare of the children. The guide lines issued by the Court to circumvent the problem of Child Neglect are highly humane in nature. The Court specifically instructs the care takers/ caseworkers to obtain the parent’s own perception on familial problems and their causes. It illustratively hints a mother’s concern about money to keep utilities on or to forestall eviction ought to be prioritised before attempting to teach her non-abusive ways to disciplining children. The causes of Child Neglect as envisaged in the CASA Program of Supreme Court of Arizona is almost a comprehensive guide to protect the children neglected. The maturity in parenting skill and capability has been measured in terms of a mother who does not maltreat or allow maltreating her children at a 6 year follow-up. (“Child Neglect”, 2010, Arizona CASA Online Training at http://www.supreme.state.az.us/casa/prepare/neglect.html ) In view of the above perspectives I have attempted to analyse the situation of child abuse in Saudi Arabia, where recently a massive awareness program has been launched to bring out the recognition status of the problem. Al-Eissa. M et al (2010) has conducted a research on the status of awareness of Child Abuse and Neglect (CAN) in Saudi Arabia and the report of their research is released in the Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect by Elsevier. The paper attempts to answer a few questions like: 1. What is the level of recognition of CAN in Saudi Arabia? 2. What are the reporting mechanisms and Regulations? 3. Where do the prevention strategies focus? 4. What are the impacts of recognition of CAN in KSA? Analysis of the research report: - A comprehensive analysis of the research paper provides the following answers to the above questions: 1. What is the level of recognition of CAN in KSA? Recognition of CAN cases is at the very beginning level. The authors ascribe this to lack of sufficient statistics on incidence and prevalence and the fear of concerned professionals over meeting unwanted litigations in case of failure to substantiate the allegations. However, the research has achieved a steady progress over a period of eight years from 2000 to 2008. The research team has made a clear comparison of CAN recognition at USA and KSA. The reason for reduced percentage of substantiated CAN cases in US is ascribed to the evaluation not merely by the health care professionals but by people representing from all walks of life. The level of recognition in US, an industrialised nation, spells some 60-70% of cases related to neglect as the most prevalent form of abuse. What are the reporting mechanisms and regulations? Health care reporting is made mandatory. Because of these legally enforced reporting laws a gradual increase in awareness of CAN as a public health issue is found. Where do the prevention strategies focus? Child protection schemes at government hospitals and other non government health care institutions and voluntary organisations are promoted throughout the country of KSA. As the awareness has started from hospitals, importance to physical abuse and consequent interventions are focussed. The injury pattern statistics recorded in the paper indicate the immediate area of attention and intervention needed to be made. What are the impacts of recognition of CAN in KSA? The first Child Protection Act was drafted in 2004. The roles played by national media and multi-disciplinary teams of Saudi Arabia in achieving this goal are really commendable. Implementation of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) in various governmental agencies by establishing Child Protection Centres in major hospitals is the milestone in CAN awareness and prevention strategies. Research methods used in the paper are quite apt to the situation necessitating utmost attention to the Child Victims. The research team admits the limits of its research that it could not be considered as a generalisation of the problem globally. At the same time it has invited further researchers to perform researches with social out look. They believe that the highly rotten social disease of child abuse and neglect could be attempted to be mitigated only with social outlook. Findings and discussion: - In line with the authors’ contention itself, it can well be deemed that emotional abuse and neglect did not erupt in the later phase of their research but surfaced in the later phase. To put it in other words, a radical upside down outlook at this stage itself would make it clear that neglect and subsequent emotional abuse have ever been prevalent and were standing as the root causes of the currently excavated contingencies of physical abuse at its heightened level of intensity. Researches in this regard are being conducted to evaluate the intensity of affectation in terms of physical abuse, since physical abuses outnumber direct cases of psychological and emotional abuses. A psychological approach to the problem may open fresh flood gates that would facilitate nearing the crux of problem. Socio psychological perception is thus the need for alleviation; because, thoughts are sources of actions. Different forms of abuse (Mathur M et al, 2009) prevailing every where sprout from social neglect and isolation. The two different cases of isolation in respect of the girls Anna and Isabelle aged each six years in US during 1940 and 1947 as documented by the sociologist Kingsley Davis clearly pronounces the impact of isolation to be highly worse. Just because of illegitimacy of their birth they were confined to dark attic-like room and forced into seclusion. Their behaviour at the age of six years exhibited that of six month olds without even an inkling of speech capacity and ability to feed themselves. (Ferrante. J, 2006). Self-perception of children when found to be deformed due to parenting inefficiencies, such as impairment of bonding and attachment to parents, affects personality development of children. These types of intergenerational deficient parenting patterns could be modified through education and effective treatment interventions with both parents and children. (Peterson. M.S, 2007) Conclusion: - Child Abuse and Neglect when viewed through the glasses of science and cultural evolution is really worrisome. Joan Ferrante (2006. pp.116) illustrates that the genes parents transmit to their offspring reach back over an indefinite period of time through four biological grand-parents, eight biological great grand-parents and beyond. The seed bed of this enigma could be understood to be at the nucleus of mankind. Recognition of this problem as socially unacceptable behaviour at the current stage is somewhat breather. We have to cross several millions of miles at evolutionary level in achieving a society free from CAN. Let’s move with a strong fold hope that we can. Recommendations: - Physical abuse and sexual abuse on children are the results of social isolation and neglect infusing psychological and emotional abuses. A basic question in this regard would make this statement of mine clearer. “Will a valued individual/human being be abused?’. Answer to this question would invariably point towards neglect first and the abuses inflicted upon the physiques of children would automatically follow. An out of the box thinking and approach is needed at this hour to head towards elimination of this ‘ignored phenomenon affecting children around the world’. C.A.N could rather be considered as a symptom of chronic social endemic than something as children-related social deformity. Child Protection Schemes are to be collocated with Social, political and regulatory Reform methods. Constant awareness programs would bring out more and more CAN cases to the brim so that prevention could also be navigated through general awareness. Inclusion of anthropologists, sociologists and more number of psychologists and psychiatrists in SCAN teams would be a step towards this goal, since it is the worst disease of mankind that needs intervention. =end= Reference list – “Child Neglect”, 2010, Arizona CASA Online Training at http://www.supreme.state.az.us/casa/prepare/neglect.html Ferrante. J, 2006, pp. 115-116, “Sociology: A Global Perspective”, Thomson Learning Inc, USA Majid Al-Eissa and Maha Al-Muneef, 2010, “Child Abuse and Neglect in Saudi Arabia: Journey of recognition to implementation of National Prevention Strategies” Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect, Vol. 34. Issue. 1 (28-33). Elsevier Ltd. Mathur M. Rathore P. and Monika Mathur, 2009, pp. 907-913, “Incidence, type and intensity of abuse in street children in India”, Journal of Child Abuse and Neglect, Vol. 32. Issue 12 Peterson. M.S, 2007, pp.19, “The Role of Mental Health Professional in Prevention and Treatment of Child Abuse and Neglect”, The User Manual Series by US Department of Health and Human Services Read More