More than 100 cases of violence against children in July

The gender ministry attended to 105 cases of violence against children in July, including 34 cases of child sexual abuse, according to statistics released on Sunday.

There were 36 cases of child sexual abuse in June.

Almost half the 214 cases reported to the ministry during July involved violence against children, including 25 cases of negligence, 19 cases of physical abuse, 11 cases of emotional abuse, seven cases where a child was witness to domestic violence, eight cases of bullying and harassment and one case of child trafficking.

Physical and sexual abuse of children remain key problems in the Maldives.

During July, gender ministry also attended to one case of violation of the right to shelter, one case of refusal of access to education, and two cases of denial of birth registration.

Behavioural problems reported during the month included nine cases of refusal to attend school and three cases of children running away from home.

There were 14 cases of custody or access, 10 case of parenting issues and three cases of child maintenance issues.

Three cases of minors in conflict with the law were also attended by the ministry.

A total of 35 cases involving gender-based violence was reported in July – one fewer than June – including 13 cases of physical violence and five cases of sexual violence or abuse.

Four cases of rape were reported during July.