Child Sexual Abuse
Child sexual abuse is the exploitation of a child for sexual gratification by an adult or any significantly older person. It is called incest if it occurs between family members, including mothers, fathers, grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, adoptive and step relations, legitimate or illegitimate children or relatives of whole or half blood.
Child sexual abuse should not be confused with physical contacts between an adult and a child that are fond or playful expressions of love. Responsible adults limit their physical exchange with a child, respect the child and at the same time, maintain a warm, healthy, affectionate relationship.
Child sexual abuse covers a wide range of activities, including:
Non-physical offences:
- Verbal stimulation
- Obscene phone calls
- Exposure
- Voyeurism
- Showing a child pornographic pictures or films
Physical offences:
- Fondling
- Oral intercourse or attempted oral intercourse
- Vaginal or anal intercourse or attempted intercourse
- Exploitation of children through prostitution and/or child pornography
Perpetrators of child sexual abuse:
The perpetrators of child sexual abuse may appear perfectly normal to those who know him. Most of the perpetrators are usually people known to the child, i.e. – fathers, stepfathers, relatives, grandparents, tuition teachers, and neighbours. Malaysian Police statistics for year 2006 shows that 89% of the child sexual abuse perpetrators are people known to the victims. In this 89% of the perpetrators, 53% of them are parents.