In last week’s column the sexual abuse of Guyanese children was discussed. I shared a few recent cases. In one of those cases a thirteen-year-old girl died by suicide and there were allegations about sexual abuse. In another case a teacher was accused of raping a student. There was a pregnant 12-year-old girl in another case who was allegedly abused by her stepfather. Her sister who is younger is also said to have been abused by the stepfather.
Unfortunately, child sexual abuse in Guyana is not a rare occurrence. The paths that lead to some people becoming depraved adults are marred by trauma and often rooted in the sexual abuse they experienced as children. It is a rampant occurrence that is unfortunately encouraged, excused and perpetuated by too many.
There was another disturbing incident that came to light this week. This case not only exposed the growing degeneracy in this society but also exposed that even those who mean well can exploit abuse victims and that families often fail their children.
It was reported some weeks ago that a 12-year-old girl was missing. Another disturbing reality in Guyana is the regular occurrence of missing children. Often, we hear that they are found but the details about what led to their disappearance and who was responsible are not released to the public. There are allegations about children being trafficked and some are blamed for their own demise when they run away to be with older sexual predators. There seems to be little being down to address the root of these issues. The breakdown of the family structure has negatively affected society. As parents we must equip our children with the knowledge to know what is safe and unsafe. We must spend time talking to them and provide them with the necessary tools to deal with challenges.
In the case of the 12-year-old whose story came to light this week, we know the details of the case. She was found and what occurred when she was missing is known. The child said that she met the sexual predator on TikTok. This raises a conversation about parents allowing their young children to have access to social media. Unfortunately, the perverts are many lurking in those spaces. Around the world there are children who have been lured to their deaths because of social media, raped, trafficked or otherwise exploited. Our children need to be protected. We either need to keep them off social media or closely monitor their activity.
This child communicated with the sexual predator using a relative’s phone and he encouraged her to leave school one day and meet him at a particular location. She complied and he who rode a motorcycle all the way from Berbice to Georgetown met her at the location. He took her to his home in Berbice where he sexually assaulted her multiple times and had her babysit his child.
She was missing for more than three weeks and thankfully was found alive. Unfortunately, the scars this child bears are deep, and it will take a village that cares for her and loves her, for those scars to begin healing.
One of the appalling things about this case is that this child was exposed on a Facebook live a few days ago. Her mother was being interviewed by Simona Broomes who recently formed the Assembly for Liberty and Prosperity (ALP) political party. In the beginning we the audience were aware that the child was in the background, but I never imagined that we would see her. The work that Broomes has done in combatting human trafficking and her other humanitarian efforts cannot be denied. She continues to be one of the loud voices for change in Guyana. However, I believe that she erred during this live when the child was shown. Not only was the child crying but I could see that the deep scars in her soul were bleeding. She should not have been exposed only to be subjected to the blame and re-traumatisation she is facing from a sick society.
There will never be an instance where I would condemn or blame a child for being sexually abused by an adult. If we were a society that stood firmly on truth, justice, and righteousness and were serious about protecting children, this would never be the case. But unfortunately, there are many heartless people in our society. There were many comments of course empathizing with the child. However, the heartless were also loud in condemning the child. They made her culpable. In some instances, I saw more vitriol for the child than for the adult degenerate who took her to Berbice and assaulted her.
This is the society we live in. We are sinking further into depravity. It is disturbing to see especially adult women, some who are mothers, blaming a child for being sexually abused. There is no case in which a child is sexually abused by an adult and that child is responsible. Even if that child shows willingness to participate the onus is on the adult to exercise judgement and mute the voices encouraging them to be a sexual predator. Adults should seek help if they are sexually attracted to children. The actions of children cannot be compared to the actions of adults. The prefrontal cortex, which is responsible for decision making, reasoning and other cognitive functions is not fully developed until the mid 20s. However perhaps explaining this to some of the heartless ones is useless as they are too far gone on the road of depravity.
It was not only that this child was taken to Berbice and raped, but other details about the case have emerged. There are allegations that the child was also sexually abused by a relative and that is the reason she ran away on multiple occasions.
I hope there is a village that can surround this child and not point fingers of blame at her. A village that can place plasters on the wounds in her soul, uplift her, encourage her, love and protect her from further harm. She deserves this and all the other Guyanese children crying silently because sexual predators harmed them.
