Child Abuse: Not Just India’s Daughters

In 2012, the second episode of Satyameva Jayate aired on national television, bringing the conversation of child sexual abuse to India’s living rooms. The episode featured a brave young man who spoke out about his experience of child sexual abuse in his family, thus challenging the notion that sexual abuse is a crime that is committed exclusively against girls and women. “I did tell my mother something was happening”, tells the young man on national television as the camera shifts to the parent, putting her on the spot. In reply to Aamir Khan’s inquiry as to why she didn’t do anything, the mother replies, “I didn’t know such things even happened. I did not know what I could have done.”

Since then, India’s child abuse statistics reveal that more male children are being sexually abused compared to female children (55% boys as compared to 45% girls) in our country.  Even though more and more men are coming out and talking about their experiences, most Indian families still struggle with the idea of boys being subjected to sexual violence.

A female child is subject to a lot of restrictions on freedom of movement in our country as she is perceived as being vulnerable to sexual violence from others. However, this lack of knowledge about the abuse of boys leaves them open to predators, as their increased freedom of movement is not supplemented with knowledge on how to protect themselves or how to ask for help if an untoward event occurs. 

Just like female children, India’s statistics reveal that male children too are subjected to sexual violence which nearly 95% of the time is by known people.  ‘Freedom at a price’ report from countries including India, reveals that in 2021 the experience of abuse for a male child was shaped by several cultural narratives that hindered them from availing help and healing optimally. 

There may be a fear of societal ridicule, as patriarchal definitions of masculinity may categorize a child as being weak or ‘not a man’ for having allowed sexual violence to happen to him. Additionally, in cultures like India where heterosexuality is the norm, the fear of judgement for having had a male–male sexual interaction with the abuser also leads to internalized shame for the child. The idea that a man must always enjoy sex has also led to the rebranding of events of male child sexual violence perpetrated by older women as a rite of passage in the journey toward manhood. This has allowed our society to erase many instances of male child sexual abuse from our collective consciousness.

Many studies also show that most male children do not disclose their experiences for fear of their experience being dismissed or minimized, which would further invalidate their trauma. Studies show that men do not disclose their abuse for decades after the incident has happened. A few anecdotal mentions in studies also revealed that even on the odd chance of disclosure, families expect male children to be more resilient and deal with trauma better than female children. 

Child sexual abuse leads to multiple long-term health-related consequences, both physical as well as mental. The victims are at very high risk of developing depression, anxiety, dissociative symptoms as well as substance abuse tendencies. Across the board, males have the same chances of developing these outcomes as female victims. Furthermore, studies reveal that disclosure is an important part of the healing process. Disclosure and supportive response towards the same accelerate healing, while increased time to disclosure is associated with worse outcomes. The other predictor of worse outcomes is adherence to masculine norms, both in the individual and the society the child belongs to. High conformity to masculine norms is also associated with a higher risk of suicide in male victims of child sexual abuse.

These studies indicate that not only is it important to disseminate information among families but also among clinicians to help them look for and identify signs of abuse in children of both gender and not only female. As a positive response to disclosure is a crucial predictor of positive outcomes, sensitizing the clinician to respond adequately and affirmatively to a child who has disclosed is also very important. Social support provided by the family and society at large is extremely important as well. Dismantling existing harmful masculine norms would ensure that any male victim of sexual violence does not internalize the shame of having gone through that experience.

‘Out of the Shadows Index’ was developed to rank countries and their provisions to both prevent as well as respond to complaints of child sexual abuse. The United Kingdom which has been deemed to have the most robust response towards child protection ensures positive responses to complaints by children and also provides a sensitized environment for the child to seek justice in a manner  that does not let them experience the trauma again and again. For example, the testimony of the child is obtained in a non-threatening environment with a camera so that the child does not have to face the person who perpetrated the crime in a courtroom full of strangers. India has a lot to learn in terms of providing all levels of care adequately for a male child.

Recently there is increased media exposure to this problem with short movies like Candy Man by Insia Dariwala winning awards and the 16th of April being declared as ‘Blue Umbrella Day’ globally to spread awareness about protecting boys. These incidents happening on a daily basis show us that the male child is stuck in a patriarchal system that he must conform to at great risk to his own self.

However, Non-Governmental Organisations like Tulir and Butterflies are continuing to work towards a better future. Workshops, plays, and other educational events are being organized by these NGOs to educate parents on how to respond and how to help prevent child sexual violence. In 2018, the amendment to the POCSO Act also ensured that abuse against boys is taken as seriously as abuse against girls legally. These changes shine a ray of hope on what appears to be a long and winding road that the Indian subcontinent must walk to ensure that the future is safe for all its children, not just its daughters.

Edited by Parth Sharma.

Image by Janvi Bokoliya.