In Sri Lanka: Over 3,000 child abuse incidents within four months 

In Sri Lanka, there have been 3,102 reported child abuse-related incidents in the first four months of this year – 2023, the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) revealed. Also, it states in its April newsletter that only through concerted, collective action can we ensure the implementation and enforcement of laws to prevent child abuse.

The highest number of reported cases this year (2023) occurred in March, with a total of 1,026 cases. The figures for the first four months of this year are as follows: January – 779 cases, February – 703 cases, March – 1,026 cases, and April – 594 cases.

Furthermore, the statistics from 2022 indicate a total of 10,497 reported cases.

These statistics were presented during a workshop, at the NCPA last week, with the aim of raising awareness among the media about child protection issues in Sri Lanka.

Sajeewani Abeykoon, Director of Law Enforcement at the NCPA, revealed that on average they receive over 600 complaints per month.

“There was a slight decrease in reported cases during the month of July last year, possibly due to the Aragalaya protest, as the fuel and economic crises may have had a positive impact for the first time. In the previous year, there were a total of 185 serious sexual harassment cases reported, along with 729 minor sexual harassment cases, 167 rape cases, and 132 reported cases of child smuggling.” Director Sajeewani pointed out.

Through that, she also emphasized the importance of educating the entire society to protect children and prevent harm to them.

Meanwhile, the organization call PEaCE (Protecting Environment and Children Everywhere), ECPAT Sri Lanka issued a newsletter today, 30th of May stating that among the districts in Sri Lanka,  Matara (in the south) had the highest reported rate of child abuse at 9%, followed by Kalutara, Monaragala, and Ratnapura districts, each at 7.7%.

“Many cases still go unreported due to a lack of awareness and understanding of the issue, as well as fear and shame among victims. This highlights the need for greater efforts to increase awareness about child abuse and create a safe environment for victims to report abusive situations.” said the Newsletter of the ECPAT Sri Lanka.

Further, it’s explained, this legal action should not be limited to law books. It must be supplemented by a multi-faceted action plan, with the government, civil society, and law enforcement shouldering the responsibility of protecting children from sexual exploitation.”

“To effect this, an atmosphere of greater awareness should be created amongst people of all ages and walks of life – school children, teachers, parents, legal guardians, private corporations, and government organizations should all be educated on the issue at hand and encouraged to play a role in creating a safe environment for the young. Only through such concerted collective action can we ensure the implementation and enforcement of these laws.” ECPAT Sri Lanka said in their April Newsletter.

Director Sajeewani Abeykoon, also mentioned that the NCPA should ideally have 618 employees, including Zonal officers, but currently, they only have 288, which is less than half of the required number. Despite their efforts to address the problem by requesting assistance from the government, State authorities, and higher officials, no action has been taken in response to the more than one hundred vacancies at the NCPA.

“We believe that the authorities working for children should be given priority, but unfortunately, the situation at the NCPA has deteriorated due to the severe shortage of staff to handle cases and fulfill our duties,” she said.

The NCPA also introduced a hotline in 1929 to complain about child abuse-related cases.

END.