I do not think that the numbers published related to child abuse are anywhere close to reality. The numbers resemble those related to theft statistics. Some theft cases are reported; the majority, for whatever reason, are not.
When I was working in a job dealing with children, I saw horrifying things. There were children with diabetes and no one in the family was caring for them. Why? Because their father had divorced their mother and their father’s second wife had no time for the first wife’s children.
I saw children coming to the emergency room for three times because they had taken the wrong medicine. Their stomachs were pumped and they were sent home — all three times.
There are far worse stories than these. There are children with bruises on their bodies as a result of physical abuse; they go to school and everybody sees the bruises and does nothing about them. The school administration does nothing and applies the rule: Hear nothing, see nothing, do nothing.
One of the worst stories I have heard was of a child brought to the emergency room after having his head beaten against a wall. He spent the rest of his life in a hospital for the mentally disabled.
We read articles everyday in our newspapers about agreements having to do with women’s and children’s rights. They are no more than papers, full of words, signed and never implemented. What is the point of an agreement if schools do not report badly battered children? What good is an agreement if no one at the hospital asks a child how he got the terrible injuries he is carrying?
In my opinion, the important thing is what comes after an abuse case is proven. Where are our institutions to give this child a safe refuge until he can go back home with no fear of abuse? Is the law here to force abusive parents to undergo therapy? When I talk about finding a solution to the problem of violence, I feel as if I am talking to myself and no one else is listening.
