Sexual abuse within the family

[DJKeefy]

Sexual abuse in Egypt is a great taboo but it is the victims who pay the price for society’s intolerance.

At the base of the hill known as Dowieka mountain on the outskirts of Cairo lies a shantytown called Zirzara. The small town hides a secret of widespread sexual abuse within families.

From the top of the mountain looking down you can see rows of shacks that house hundreds of families. In front of many of the impoverished homes sit girls of six and seven years, as their mothers collect garbage to make their living.

The older sister of one of these girls, Amal, 17, enters her home looking weak and shy and narrates how she was repeatedly raped by her father, ending up pregnant.

“He enters the room completely drunk…He forces me on the bed, undresses me and sexually assaults me,” she says in a trembling tone. Amal’s pale face reveals how weak she has become. She gave birth to a baby boy a few weeks ago.

Amal did not reveal that she was raped by her father until she discovered her pregnancy. Souad, Amal’s mother, says “she kept hiding [the rape] from me for almost a year. One day she came and told me she hadn’t had her period and was afraid.

“I had to send her to a family relative until she had the baby. I could not let her be seen in the area. I wanted to keep her away from everyone, especially her brother.”

Souad sent her daughter away out of fear Amal would be hurt or killed by people living in the slum, and out of shame.

*****

Dr Hoda Zakaria, a professor of political sociology at Zaqaziq University, outlines the extreme social stigma associated with sexual assault and why girls like Amal find it almost impossible to speak out. In patriarchal societies like Egypt, instead of punishing the abuser, victims of assault are the ones blamed.

Following most crimes, supporting and helping the victim is the usual course of action. “Rape is the only crime where the victim is held responsible,” says Zakaria.

Zakaria explains that such an attitude is prevalent among rural communities. While shooting a documentary called Virginity, the professor asked people from Upper Egypt what their reactions would be to a girl raped by 10 people. “They said that they would kill her first, then figure out what to do.”

It is all related to a value system based on shame and honour. They kill the victim to erase the perceived shame and redeem an imagined honour. Zakaria makes clear that in such a system, the value of justice and equity collapses.

Lawyer Mohamed Shawky gives an example from a Bedouin tribe in Marsa Matrouh, a Mediterranean town on the way to the Libyan border. The father was a shepherd, who left his family frequently. He was shocked to discover on his return that his daughter had been impregnated by her uncle.

“She was raped by her uncle,” says Shawky “and the man fled.” When the victim’s mother discovered the pregnancy, she told the father. “He locked his daughter up for two weeks, and did not know what to do about the shame brought upon him.”

The father believed that even if he had aborted the pregnancy, he would not be able to erase the shame. “He killed his daughter,” says Shawky, “he dug a ditch in the ground and hit her on the head.” The father then reported himself to the authorities.

Stories such as these make it clear why Souad sent her daughter Amal away to protect her.

“After I sent her away I kept searching for [her father] to tell him about the disaster. He said I don’t care. I haven’t touched her. Go see how you will deal with your shame,” Souad says.

Souad has sent away another two of her daughters, fearing that their father would one day come and rape them like their sister.

*****

Amal says her father raped her twice, although her mother believes it was more. “The first time he forced me into bed I started screaming. He threatened to kill me. I cried heavily and told him, but you are my daddy. He said that there is not such a thing as ‘father’ in situations like these,” says Amal.

Head of the psychiatry department at Damietta College of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Mohamed Al-Mahdy puts forward a trite psychological explanation for sexually abusive behaviour. “The father is a sexually deviated person who probably has been suffering a great deal of psychological disturbances.”

Al-Mahdy suggests that people who cannot differentiate between sexually acceptable attitudes towards members of their family have not overcome their Oedipus complex, a popular psychological theory in which a boy’s perception of his mother is dominated by jealousy and anger towards his father. “When a child does not overcome this at the age of five, he grows up with a confusion of feelings towards members of his family.”

In Amal’s neighbourhood, another contributing factor associated with sexual abuse is widespread drug and alcohol abuse. Al-Mahdy says drugs play a significant role in familial assaults. “Those who abuse drugs, alcohol or any sort of stimulants are susceptible to any kind of abnormal behaviour,” says the psychiatrist.

Usually, Amal’s father breaks into the house either drunk or high on drugs.

Amal says her father used to touch her in a ‘strange’ way, but she never imagined he had a sexual desire. “I usually thought he is simply my father.” She says he often comes in the room apparently unaware of his behaviour and starts beating her.

“I find him entering the room beating me harshly, he will sleep with me for about 10 minutes and leave the room,” she says, adding that he has tried to sexually abuse her 10-year-old sister as well.

In cases like Amal’s, the abusive member of the family tends to grant the victim privileges over other family members, before resorting to intimidation. Al-Mahdy suggests “[the] abuser would start with bribing the victim to not tell anyone. The girl would feel that she is exceptional to her dad who treats her differently than her other sisters…The victim gets completely messed up at this stage.”

Such treatment has a profoundly damaging psychological effect on the victim. Al-Mahdy explains that the victim’s perception of her father is distorted and, in addition, she develops feelings of jealousy from her mother and sisters.

But most frequently, victims of sexual assault haunted by fear will appear “broken and silent.”

*****

Amal’s father does not have a regular job and Amal’s assaults have always occurred when her mother is busy with work, sorting through garbage to find plastic, which she sells to earn a meagre sum for a family of six children (including Amal’s brother; a drug dealer).

“I have to leave the house to bring them money. What shall I do when I hardly earn five pounds a week? This bed sheet you see here. I collected it from the garbage,” Souad says, her words broken by sobs.

Dr Zakaria believes that sexual assault in the family, when it happens, is much more common in certain areas. “Such crimes happen in Upper Egypt, some slums and rural areas,” she said, “it is usually associated with a social under class living in poverty.”

According to Zakaria, despite the lack of statistical data caused by victims’ reluctance to come forward, familial sexual assault is not a widespread phenomenon in Egypt and occurs in a very limited scope.

Al-Mahdy agrees that “poverty and illiteracy are indeed strong factors here. In slum areas, we see a family of more than four living in one room. Children see their parents during sex.”

Astonishingly, he also implies that sexually abusive fathers would be less inclined to assault their children if their daughters dressed conservatively at home.

Attitudes such as these, which seek to place any amount of responsibility on the abused, are condemned in the strongest terms by Zakaria. A girl should feel comfortable wearing whatever she likes at home in front of her father or brothers. She adds that a girl should feel safe among her family and should not be oppressed.

Sexual abuse in families usually occurs in houses where familial relations are not strictly defined since childhood and Zakaria stresses the significance of a child’s upbringing.

Restricting what the daughter can wear, or denying her rights, will not address in any way the psychological issues apparent in her father or brother.

*****

Although Amal was a victim of a great taboo she has benefitted from unusual levels of assistance from her mother. Initially they tried to abort the pregnancy. As Amal approached the end of her pregnancy in hiding, her mother would visit frequently to help her give birth quickly. “I gave her hot drinks and certain recipes to sharpen her contractions. I was the one who delivered the baby with my own hands,” says Souad

Amal hasn’t even seen her newborn baby. It was taken away immediately and her mother claims she sent it to her cousin in the Emirates. A friend of the family says that that Souad has probably sold the baby to a rich family in the gulf.

A USAID report, issued in 2007, titled Assessment on the Status of Trafficking in Persons in Egypt, highlights that Egypt is a country of origin, and not just transit, for women who are trafficked to Arab countries such as Saudi Arabia, the United Arab States, Jordan, Kuwait, and Yemen.

Amal is left more than confused. “I don’t know what to do. I now have a baby who is both my son and my brother. I didn’t even see him or know where they took him. My breast pains me. I could not even breastfeed him.”

*****

Souad is deeply troubled by events in the town. “My daughter is not the only girl who has been raped by her father here in Zirzara.” Soaud has helped three girls to abort their pregnancies. She denies earning any money in return.

There are no recent figures regarding sexual assault within the family in Egypt. “Even if there were any statistics or numbers,” Zakaria says, “it would only be the tip of the iceberg.”

Faten Fawzy, lawyer at the Egyptian Centre for Women’s Rights, says the main reason behind the lack of reports is that victims of assault fear reporting the crime. “There were a few cases received at the centre… but they did not reach court.” They did not reach court, because the victims refused to file a lawsuit against the perpetrator.

Fawzy believes that women fear reporting rape, especially if the person responsible is a family member. Victims complained to the ECWR mainly by telephone, but they feared taking the complaint further.

Victims do not only fear being harmed by their abuser, they also fear how society will perceive them and they do not want to be disgraced. So families seek to solve the issue in private, rather than seeking external help. These attitudes prevent specialists from acquiring precise data and offering relevant help or support.

Noura Ibrahim, responsible for a programme against domestic violence at the Centre for Egyptian Women’s Legal Affairs, says in Upper Egypt, women are usually scared to talk about their experiences with their in-laws, fearing that they would be kicked out of their house or blamed for any wrongdoings.

Ibrahim explains, “if a wife were to make a complaint of harassment against her father-in-law or brother-in-law, he would probably start claiming that she is a troublemaker, causing her problems with her mother-in-law and husband.” In most cases in Upper Egypt, where wives live with their husbands in large family homes, women and girls are more prone to sexual abuse within the family when the husband is absent.

In spite of a lack of data on the subject, Al-Mahdy believes that 75 per cent of perpetrators refrain from repeating sexual assault, when the victim informs someone about it. Though it is not a widespread issue, familial sexual assault occurs in complicated circumstances. Zakaria thinks that such cases are connected to the degeneration of morals in the victim’s family. She added that it is important to promote educational programmes and conduct awareness campaigns that address morals and enhance family structures.

Rehabilitation is an absolute necessity for victims of sexual assault. But rehabilitation is rarely provided due to fear of disgrace, and specialists say that families tend to veil the disgrace instead.

Girls in Amal’s situation usually get married quickly following the rape. Souad will help her daughter follow the example of the other three girls in the neighbourhood, who were also sexually assaulted by their fathers and/or brothers.

“I will get her married to my cousin next month. I will slaughter a chicken, and use its blood as a sign of her virginity on the wedding night,” says the mother.

*****

Social stigma frames the victim of sex crimes as the accused party. However, justice is attainable through the law in the very rare cases when the victim comes forward. Egyptian laws specifically and distinctly address sexual assault, rape and sexual abuse (hatk al aerd). The law permits severe punishment of a perpetrator who is related to the victim; is responsible for bringing up the victim; has guardianship over the victim; or works in the victim’s home.

Counselor Tamer Kamel, Head of the Appeals Court clarified that “the punishment in some rape cases could include execution.”

“I hope [President] Mohamed Morsy will order the death penalty of every father who rapes his daughter,” says Souad.

Names have been changed to protect privacy

Source: http://dailynewsegypt.com/2012/12/19/se ... he-family/

[Teddyboy]

"75 per cent of perpetrators refrain from repeating sexual assault, when the victim informs someone about it."

Perhaps if their throats were cut, that figure could be 100%! I'm sure that plenty of mothers could be found to carry out such a sentence.

[LovelyLadyLux]

Completely totally archaic thinking re: sexual abuse. Sad sad sad.........however....... could be very much the same in our own societies except we have mandated reporters who MUST report to Social Services any and all concerns or information they have regarding suspected abuse, neglect of a child. Most children do NOT self report. Some do but most do not. Typically information regarding child abuse (sexual/physical) comes in via 3rd party reporting ie. a child tells a friend who tell their mother who tells school officals or a counselor who then MUST report.

Perpetrators NEVER stop with one. They are experts at grooming and manipulation and often initially leave their target child even wondering IF the Perpetrator really DID mean to touch them (or was the Perpetrator really just brushing the spilled whatever off their clothes)??? Doesn't seem in this area the men need to 'groom' the child(ren) they are abusing.

Sexual abuse can be a pervasive multigenerational issue that holds shame for all involved. Hard to believe the mom truly did not KNOW and so long as 'shame and honour' are primary motivators the societal ill of sexual abuse will never be appropriately dealt with.

[LivinginLuxor]

It's good to know that Egypt is as bad as Britain in this respect! The vast majority of sexual abuse cases in Britain are between family members, or close friends of said family. But, of course, it sells newspapers to 'terrify' parents to stop their children being allowed to play outside because of sexual predators.

[Winged Isis]

Sadly, it's the same the world over. It's just the level of reporting that is different. Mandatory reporting is unfortunately very modern and should have been in place centuries ago. It still doesn't always work. Just look at the problem with the Catholic church hierarchy in Australia who still haven't reported know paedophile priests to the police.

[jewel]

The book by Martin Dak explains the whole area of incest and sexual abuse, it's effects and consequences.
In general it severely affects emotional intelligence, meaning the abused may have teen pregnancies, and being sexualised by the abuse go on to reproduce mindlessly, and prolifically, thus perpetuating the cycle.
This ultimately leads to overpopulation and environmental destruction


Childhood sexual abuse starts a vicious cycle of self-destructive behavior, but only few sexually abused people become patently psychopathic and risk their lives. Most survivors of incest show their brain damage in subtle ways and only over the long run. With our emotional intelligence limited, we cannot feel the meaning of the future consequences. Even worse, we are trying to solve the causes of our problems by relying on the same behavioral approaches that created such problems in the first place.

Because of diminished emotional intelligence, farmers have been using chemicals to kill weeds and insects; meat producers have been feeding chemicals and antibiotics to animals;
manufacturers of materials and goods have been applying poisonous chemicals to facilitate production, and doctors have been attacking humans directly:
EG flu vaccines , antibiotics, drugs, vaccines.
I am currently reading David Benetars book "Better never to have been....the harm of Coming into existence" which is certainly very thought provoking and intriguing.


http://www.lucidpages.com/doom.html

Yes it IS worldwide in all cultures, it just varies depending on the place.
Cultural factors do have an effect, the example of Africans breastfeeding children until 15 years old, which is sexually abusive to the child, is acceptable in that culture.

Also western cultures have legalized and socially embraced certain forms of sexual abuse. Until recently, Great Britain did not recognize oral rape as a form of sexual abuse. As for child circumcision, it is currently practiced by most industrialized countries. The medical industry even promotes this surgical procedure and praises it for having "beneficial effects" on the child's health. In essence, such forms of sexual abuse are institutionalized psychopathology, and the children are always affected mentally.

http://www.lucidpages.com/incest.html

[Teddyboy]

As a parent of three children, I truly believe that it is impossible for non-parents to appreciate the full horror of a father sexually abusing his own children. Parents have experienced life on both sides of the 'parental fence' (as they were not parents previously) and I'm sure that any of them will testify that the act of becoming a parent means that you can never be the same person again.

I don't want to seem to be 'having a go' at jewel (I'd rather leave that to the usual suspects) but it is my fervent belief that childless people should not be allowed to pontificate on subjects where children's welfare is involved; no matter what 'qualifications' they may have.

[jewel]

Teddy boy great respect mate, but it's "childfree" not " childless", point number one, and to be honest if anyone who had children had any concern for their welfare at all they would never have had them in the first place.
Sex is morally acceptable if it's not reproductive. (David Benatar 2009)

"Philosophers......ought much rather to employ themselves in rendering a few individuals happy, than inciting the suffering species to multiply itself".
Martin in Voltaire's Candide

Coming into existence is always a harm, indeed given the evidence I would say that there is a duty not to procreate.
Humans, like all creatures, have urges which lead to reproduction. Our biological urge is to have sex, not to make babies. Our “instinct to breed” is the same as a squirrel’s instinct to plant trees: the urge is to store food, trees are a natural result. If sex is an urge to procreate, then hunger’s an urge to defecate.

Also TB it isn't only parents who sexually abuse children, nor is it only confined to men.

[timetraveller]

As a parent of three children, I truly believe that it is impossible for non-parents to appreciate the full horror of a father sexually abusing his own children. Parents have experienced life on both sides of the 'parental fence' (as they were not parents previously) and I'm sure that any of them will testify that the act of becoming a parent means that you can never be the same person again.

I don't want to seem to be 'having a go' at jewel (I'd rather leave that to the usual suspects) but it is my fervent belief that childless people should not be allowed to pontificate on subjects where children's welfare is involved; no matter what 'qualifications' they may have.

Very narrow minded of you Teddy, in my opinion. I do not have any children myself. This is through circumstance more than choice. I am however qualified to 'pontificate' on subjects where children's welfare is concerned. I studied and worked long and hard to gain those qualifications.I fully understand the horror and the consequences of sexual abuse of children and have been instrumental in bringing several perpetrators of such abuse to justice.

Several of my colleagues were also childless. A significant proportion were Gay men. Were we unqualified to do our jobs? I don't think so. Our lack of personal of experience of parenthood was not necessarily a disadvantage. A bit of 'distance' can aid objectivity. The last thing that a childcare professional needs to be is overwhelmed by the 'horror' of sexual abuse. This just disables the worker and fails the child. We are all human, even those of us who are not fortunate enough to be parents. We can still empathise with the plight of abused children, because we were all children once. But 'wailing and gnashing of teeth' serves no purpose. Taking the perpetrators to court and getting them locked up does!

[jewel]

Good answer TT but again it is not "childless" but " childfree" as there is a distinct difference. I myself am a member of VEHMT, and there are many people, men and women who have made that choice based on sound reasoning, men have had vasectomies to ensure they remain child free, the same with women.

But apart from the ethics involved and choices about being childfree, I agree it is a very narrow view, indeed arrogant almost to suggest that only a " parent" has any right or experience to speak about child abuse, I dislike the word "pontificate" as it sounds judgemental.
You say " not fortunate enough" to be a parent TT, where as I would see that as fortunate indeed, especially if by choice, and as you say objectivity is a marvellous thing.

http://www.vhemt.org/biobreed.htm#intelltest

[Teddyboy]

Childfree or childless, it's matterless! I have the greatest of respect for anyone employed in relieving pain and distress, either professionally or voluntarilly, but if either childfree or childless, they can never ever know the love or empathy that a parent has for their child. Sorry, but that's a fact. While training and qualifications are all very well, they still fall short where parenthood hasn't also been experienced.

jewel, why do you keep posting pointless quotes from other people? Is their experience or insight supposed to mean more than that of the plebs like you and me?

[timetraveller]

Childfree or childless, it's matterless! I have the greatest of respect for anyone employed in relieving pain and distress, either professionally or voluntarilly, but if either childfree or childless, they can never ever know the love or empathy that a parent has for their child. Sorry, but that's a fact. While training and qualifications are all very well, they still fall short where parenthood hasn't also been experienced.

jewel, why do you keep posting pointless quotes from other people? Is their experience or insight supposed to mean more than that of the plebs like you and me?

Not a 'fact' Teddyboy. Just your rather bigoted opinion. If you have never worked as a Child Care Professional you are in no position to make a reasoned assessment of who 'falls short' and who doesn't and in what respect. And that IS a fact. 'Pontificate' on those matters you have experience of, not on those you don't.

[Teddyboy]

Bigoted? (I always feel that once someone resorts to hurling insults or abuse, they are just about admitting the poverty of their actual argument!) I'm sorry, TT but we'll have to agree to disagree on this. As I indicated, the difference between not being a parent and being a parent is huge, and came as a major shock when it happened to me. Until you've had your own child, you cannot know of what I am talking. (A reasonable analogy might be that of your favourite food! Until you first tasted it, how could you possibly know that it would be your 'favourite food'?)

What's more 'professional' than the 24/7 childcare of your own flesh and blood? With the best will in the world, to suppose or suggest that any sort of emotionally detached 'training' can ever equal the quality of care of a loving birth mother is a patent nonsense!

It goes without saying that there are parents who should never be let near their children, but these are not 'normal', and are (thankfully) quite rare in reality.

[jewel]

Teddy boy you really are self opinionated are you not? Which is rather unfortunate, as it is a fact that many parents are selfish and narcissistic and are not full of "love and empathy" for their progeny at all!
From basic neglect to abuse, time and again this is demonstrated by parents to their offspring. You don't have to search too far to find examples of this, even resulting in infanticide, this is commonly reported, how does this demonstrate parental love and empathy?
My opinion for what it is worth is that rather than condemn any child to this, far better to never have been, but sadly these abused and emotionally damaged individuals appear not to recognise this, and continue the sorry cycle of existence. It is a fact that most abusive families have the most offspring. Sad but true.
Regarding "hurling abuse" ? I don't think that TT was doing this at all, in fact can people not express their own ( very valid) opinion, without these accusations? Strange that, as they are just as valid, and dare one say more objective than those of a " parent" who are at your own admission more emotionally charged? Just saying.

[Teddyboy]

"It goes without saying that there are parents who should never be let near their children, but these are not 'normal', and are (thankfully) quite rare in reality."

Thank you jewel for expanding on that which I have 'quoted' above, although I don't really think that it needed to be expanded upon, as it was quite self explanatory in my view.

Of course I'm 'self' opinionated, and rightly so in this instance in my view, as I know things that you can never know, unless you become a parent!

"in fact can people not express their own ( very valid) opinion, without these accusations?"

What? Accusations of bigotry for stating what one believes to be a fact? Give over!

[Winged Isis]

As a parent of three children, I truly believe that it is impossible for non-parents to appreciate the full horror of a father sexually abusing his own children.

Rubbish. We have all been children, so have exactly the right idea of how horrible it would be.

[Teddyboy]

That's not the point I was trying to make WI. Although it's really rather obvious that we have all been children and would therefore be able to imagine the horror from a child's point of view; only a father can realistically appreciate the depths of depravity it would involve to callously sexually abuse one's own child.

[timetraveller]

I don't want to seem to be 'having a go' at jewel (I'd rather leave that to the usual suspects) but it is my fervent belief that childless people should not be allowed to pontificate on subjects where children's welfare is involved; no matter what 'qualifications' they may have.[/quote]


Teddy, do you really have no idea how offensive and bigoted that statement is? If you removed all of the non-parents from childcare teams across the UK, services would be severely restricted! Myself and other colleagues without children of our own have done quite a lot 'pontificating' on child welfare issues in front of Judges in UK Courts, including the High Court. Our 'pontifications' were deemed to be 'professional evidence' and our testimony considered vital to the cases concerned. After all we were the 'applicant'. At no time during these years has it ever been suggested that I or other such childless professionals had no business 'pontificating' in those Court Rooms. Fortunately none of the Judges concerned seemed to share your 'fervent belief' that we should not 'be allowed' to do so.

And I repeat, not being a parent is not seen as a disadvantage in child care professions where the emphasis is generally on assessment, analysis and sound judgement. In some cases being a parent can impact on professionalism because responses to the abuse of children can be overly emotive and result in impaired judgement. Similarly, one manager I knew openly admitted that she 'upped' her supervision and support of pregnant women on her team because they were likely to be very 'hormonal', and their often hyper-emotional state was likely to give rise to 'knee-jerk' reactions and a reduced ability to cope with distressing situations.

Parenthood is no guarantee of superior knowledge or judgement regarding child care issues Teddy, and to make that assumption is arrogant in the extreme. There are some very poor examples of parenting to be observed even in 'developed' countries, and I've seen a good number of them! And it is neither necessary nor appropriate for Child Care Professionals to feel the same bond with their young clients as a parent does for their own child. This would be considered over-involvement and very unprofessional. And for good reason.

[Scottishtourist]

This is very emotive subject!
I personally do not see TB's views as arrogant or narrow minded!He is speaking as a father and whether you respect his decision to pro-create or not,I feel he does have a very valid point!
I have sat in meetings with childfree/childless "experts."
Whilst I cannot deny that they take a very professional approach to their work and seek proper justice for these "victims",I sometimes find that their attitude lacks compassion.
It can all be very "businesslike."Questions,clip boards,reports,whilst all the time showing very little human compassion for these girls.Results and reports can sometimes cloud the very sensitive issues.
They also tend to totally disregard the feelings and emotions of any medical staff involved in the care of these girls.Intimate questions are asked,details are sought,and in majority of cases these girls are still suffering both mentally and physically.
I have never looked at the emotional impact...that's not my job.
But...I've comforted young girls whilst a doctor stitches up their torn genitals and advised them on breast care when their milk comes in and they have no idea of how painful it can be!
We can all value the work of these "professionals",I totally appreciate the work the do and the fact that they can be a little more detached when dealing with these matters than any parent could ever be.
But...they talk about A child/girl,whereas any parent knows...this could be MY/OUR child.

[timetraveller]

This is very emotive subject!
I personally do not see TB's views as arrogant or narrow minded!He is speaking as a father and whether you respect his decision to pro-create or not,I feel he does have a very valid point!
I have sat in meetings with childfree/childless "experts."
Whilst I cannot deny that they take a very professional approach to their work and seek proper justice for these "victims",I sometimes find that their attitude lacks compassion.
It can all be very "businesslike."Questions,clip boards,reports,whilst all the time showing very little human compassion for these girls.Results and reports can sometimes cloud the very sensitive issues.
They also tend to totally disregard the feelings and emotions of any medical staff involved in the care of these girls.Intimate questions are asked,details are sought,and in majority of cases these girls are still suffering both mentally and physically.
I have never looked at the emotional impact...that's not my job.
But...I've comforted young girls whilst a doctor stitches up their torn genitals and advised them on breast care when their milk comes in and they have no idea of how painful it can be!
We can all value the work of these "professionals",I totally appreciate the work the do and the fact that they can be a little more detached when dealing with these matters than any parent could ever be.
But...they talk about A child/girl,whereas any parent knows...this could be MY/OUR child.

For a start, ST what makes you think all victims of sexual abuse are girls? And obviously you do not value the work of these 'professionals' (your inverted comma's speak volumes) or 'totally appreciate the work they do'. You certainly don't seem to appreciate why they do it, which for a nurse would seem particularly worrying. Of course intimate questions are asked and details are sought. It is difficult enough to bring abusers to justice without obstruction from other professionals. Investigations need to be thorough, allegations substantiated and details clarified. There is such a thing as 'burden of proof' and courts require EVIDENCE.And all Social Workers ask these questions, regardless of whether or not they are parents themselves! It's THEIR JOB to do so! And I don't know about Scotland to be honest. Perhaps they're a bit more officious up there, but certainly none of my colleagues has ever carried a Clipboard!

You will no doubt be aware that investigations into sexual abuse of children are conducted jointly by Social Workers and Police Officers. But neither wear uniforms, are generally female, and are in no way heartless or lacking in compassion. If they were they wouldn't bother to do the job, because frankly it's a thankless task more often than not. And THEY DO look at the emotional impact of the abuse. It IS THEIR job. Have you ever witnessed a child being video interviewed in connection with an allegation of sexual abuse? If you had you would know that every effort is made to make the child feel as comfortable as possible, with normal surroundings and special toys including anatomically correct dolls to help young children explain what has happened to them. No direct or leading questions can be asked as this would make any information gained inadmissable in Court. So children are not in any way interrogated. And if the case is taken to Court their evidence is often presented by video link so they do not have to face the ordeal of a Courtroom.

And what's this about such professionals disregarding the 'feelings and emotions' of medical staff? This is hardly top of their agenda. They need primarily to concern themselves with the feelings and emotions of the children concerned. There is an expectation that other professionals ought to be able to manage their own 'feelings and emotions' appropriately and in accordance with their role.