Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2006. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Associated Press - November 17, 2006
Angus Shaw
"Are Zimbabweans really horrified by these statistics?" said Childline director Audrey Gumbo. "Are we really being jolted into action? Because this is what is needed -- action", including the strict enforcement of existing child-protection laws.
The Child Protection Working Group said sexual abuse was worsened by beliefs that sexually transmitted diseases, including HIV/Aids, could be cured by having sex with a virgin.
"This is the most repulsive of myths," said Betty Makoni, director of Girl Child Network, a member of the Child Protection Working Group.
Data released ahead of the World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse on Sunday showed 8 600 cases of abuse -- or 24 a day, or one an hour -- were reported last year across this country of nearly 12-million people. Other cases went unreported. There was no indication that trends had changed.
United Nations children's agency representative Festo Kavishe said in traditional Zimbabwean life, fear of reprisals and families' willingness to reach settlements over abuse cases enabled the problem to fester undetected and unreported.
"Silence on this issue shelters the perpetrators and is a crime against children," the coalition said in a statement.
Traditional and religious leaders "must be unequivocal in their condemnation of child abuse. They must lead by example and voice."
In the past, some tribal healers reportedly prescribed sex with juveniles as a remedy for sexually transmitted diseases, HIV infection and other ailments.
More than 20% of Zimbabwe adults are estimated infected by the virus that causes Aids. An estimated one million Zimbabwean children have been orphaned, mainly by HIV/AIDS.
"Children who are sexually abused are also the most vulnerable to contracting HIV/Aids. The impact can, therefore, quite literally last a lifetime and be fatal," the coalition said.
Zimbabwe is suffering its worst economic crisis since independence in 1980, with soaring inflation of more than 1 000%, the highest in the world, and acute shortages of food, gasoline, essential imports and medicines.
The meltdown has seen a sharp decline in public health services, deepening poverty and a rise in prostitution described by aid agencies and charities as a "coping mechanism" forced on desperately poor women and girls.
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