ELDERLY, SPOUSAL AND CHILD ABUSE

Dr Kanwaljit Soin asked the Acting Minister for Community Development if he will give the number of cases reported to his Ministry of elderly abuse, spousal abuse and child abuse for the period 1990 to 1994.

Mr Abdullah Tarmugi: For the past 5-year period, the Ministry of Community Development received:

(a) 672 complaints of child abuse;

(b) 106 complaints of family dispute involving alleged abuse and neglect of persons; and

(c) 49 cases of marital disputes where the main presenting problem was assault. (a) Child Abuse

Of the 672 cases of child abuse, 219 (32.6%) cases were assessed to be false complaints while another 281 (41.8%) cases had no evidence of abuse but required casework intervention which includes assistance to the family in areas of the care and management of children, financial assistance or school placement.

The 172 cases or 25.6% that had evidence of abuse as determined by medical reports were brought before the Juvenile Court for Care and Protection Orders.

The number of cases of child abuse reported has declined over the years.

(b) Elderly Abuse

Between 1990 - 1994 the Ministry handled a total of 106 cases of family dispute involving aged persons who complained of being neglected or abused. This is an average of 21.2 cases per year. The majority of complaints had to do with alleged denial of financial support or shelter by their adult children. A small number (11 or 10%) complained of physical abuse. Of these, 3 were cases of false complaints.

(c) Spousal Abuse

During the period, the Ministry dealt with a total of 420 enquiries from women who claimed to be assaulted. They only sought advice on the legal action they could take.

The Ministry handled 49 marital dispute cases which had assault as the presenting problem. These cases have been helped through counselling.