Report warns of alarming rise in child abuse cases

Dar es Salaam. The  welfare of children in the country is increasingly being eroded  by acts of societal abuse, which is on the rise, a new report warns.
Cases of abuse, including sexual violence targeting children has shot up over the last one year, blamed on parental neglect, poverty, witchcraft-beliefs, family disintegration and poor awareness of the rights of the minors.

According to Legal and Human Rights Centre, sexual violence was the gravest of the abuses, with sodomy  accounting for 91 per cent of  all reported cases.

The Human Rights Report 2018 shows that, 1648 more cases of violence against children were reported during the period under review.

LHRC researcher Fundikila Wazambi said there were 6,376 incidents of violence reported between January and June 2018.

 He said cases of sodomy jumped from 759 incidents in a mid-2017 to 2,365 in mid-2018 compared to 4,728 for the same period in 2017. Boarding schools were cited as among areas that the abuse was becoming rampant.

“The information on children who have been sodomised in schools is socking and teachers are not ready to cooperate to protect the businesses, said Mr Wazambi.  T researcher, Mr Fundikila Wazambi yesterday during the official launch of the report. Motorcyle riders and teachers were named among  the perpetrators.

The report also recorded yet deteriorating trends on civil and political rights in the country. Continued legal and extra-legal measures threatening right to freedom of expression, right to equality before the law and effective remedy, right to liberty and personal security, right to freedom from torture, right to freedom of assembly; right to freedom of association as well as right to participate in governance were among issues affecting civic space in Tanzania.

Deputy registrar of the High Court Nyigula Mwaseba said lack of evidence often frustrated remedial steps.