A total of 8,286 child abuse cases were reported to the Police countrywide between January and April this year. About one-third of them were defilement cases.These are some of the findings in a report by the African Network for Prevention Against Child Abuse and Neglect released yesterday.
Remarkable is that 99 cases of child trafficking were reported in the first four months of 2009. Of those, 66 occurred in mid-western region.
The report does not say where the children were taken. However, of the seven complaints the organisation received, it found that “most involved children being trafficked to Kenya and also from rural to urban areas with a promise of good education.”
In addition, there were almost 1,300 cases of child disappearance, some 1,000 cases of child stealing, 524 cases of kidnap and 317 child murders. Other complaints included child torture, assault, neglect and desertion.
The southwestern region registered the highest number of child abuse complaints, particularly defilement, followed by the southern and western regions and Kampala. Eastern and southeastern regions had the lowest incidences of child abuse.
Both child stealing and kidnap were the most prevalent in the southern and western regions and the lowest in the east.
Child murder was the highest in the south western region with 155 cases reported, followed by northwestern (100). Western Uganda also led in child neglect, desertion and torture.
The organisation’s programme coordinator, Anslem Wandega, stressed that over 1,200 children disappeared earlier this year and the Police have not traced them up to now.
Since some children are suspected to have become victims of child sacrifice, Wandega asked the Government to come up with a strong law on traditional doctors. “The Government should amend the Witchcraft Act to differentiate between the roles of traditional healers and weed out the quacks,” the report says.
“The Government should also develop a law on child sacrifice to counter the complex nature of the offences.”
Wandega also asked the President to sign the Trafficking in Persons Act, which was passed by Parliament, to control the trafficking of children.
In a bid to reduce other cases of abuse, the network has asked the Government to pass the Domestic Violence Bill, construct child protection units at every Police station and make birth registration free and compulsory.
