In 2008, a group of researchers led by Emerita Professor Rhoda Reddock of the Institute for Gender and Development Studies, St Augustine Unit (IGDS SAU), embarked on the Break the Silence (BTS) Action-Research initiative, bringing visibility to the issue of child sexual abuse (CSA). Most recently, the Banker's Association of Trinidad and Tobago (BATT) has pledged $488,000 for a period of one year to the IGDS to continue the work of the BTS campaign. This project is entitled “Filling the Gaps: Enhancing Evidence-Based Advocacy to End Child Sexual Abuse”.
In commemoration of Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Month, a panel discussion was convened on Thursday, April 20 at the School of Education Auditorium. The panel, entitled,” Child Sexual Abuse Interventions: How Far have we come and where are we now?” included Professor Rhoda Reddock, founder of CyberSafe Trinidad and Tobago Mr Daren Dhoray, Ministry of Social Development and Family Services social worker Mr Luke Sinnette, and family care physician Dr Vasant Basdeo. Dr Sue-Ann Barratt, Head of the IGDS, was the moderator.
The panel aimed to encourage a multi-sectoral conversation on prevalence, manifestations, and existing interventions for CSA in Trinidad and Tobago.
A primary subject discussed was the existing referral pathways to facilitate the reporting of CSA cases. Dr Basdeo indicated that, upon medical staff receiving reports of CSA from the Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS), District Medical Officers (DMOs) rostered with the TTPS are contacted.
He explained, “These can be both reports made directly to police stations or reports from the Child Protection Unit. Instances of CSA are then treated as medical emergencies. Survivors typically require emergency contraception, emergency STI testing, and HIV prophylaxis. In some cases, suturing is also necessary."
Mr Sinnette said that "reports of CSA can arrive at the National Family Services Division in various ways. These include direct information from the child's parents, and evidence of CSA might emerge in counselling sessions. The Child Protection Unit or Children's Authority is typically contacted in the latter's case. "
Professor Reddock said the traumatising effects of CSA are not being sufficiently addressed as issues surrounding self-harm concerning traumas of CSA are not being taken into account, along with other mental health implications. Mr Dhoray spoke about the manifestation of CSA in the digital space, expressing that "online spaces can be both a safe space and a site of abuse; places where CSA and the taboos surrounding it can be addressed, but they are also spaces where a lot of CSA occurs."
All stakeholder representatives at the forum agreed that many adults fail to report cases of CSA despite it being mandatory. They called for a Children centred approach, which includes building children's self-confidence, adopting a duty of care, safeguarding children, ensuring that adults are held accountable, and facilitating CSA awareness workshops for children. They also called for increased public education on CSA, research opportunities and activism, and implementation of the Health and Family Life Education (HFLE) curriculum within schools.
The BTS Campaign promises to continue its action-research approach while creating stakeholder engagement opportunities.
For more information, visit https://sta.uwi.edu/igds/breakthesilence/.
