Child neglect cases on the rise

Child neglect cases on the rise

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The latest child abuse statistics from the Ministry of Social Services revealed an upward trend in child neglect, with a total number of 125 new and reopened cases recorded last year.

New child neglect cases reported from January 2022 to October 2022 stood at 103.

There were 77 sexual abuse cases were recorded and 55 physical abuse cases during that same period.

In total, there were 333 new and reopened cases of child abuse, including the neglect, sexual, physical, verbal, emotional, child abandonment, and custody categories from January to October 2022.

Tavarrie Smith, an attorney focused on juvenile justice, said that the high statistics are nothing new, as the numbers have been steadily increasing for several years.

Smith pointed to a growing trend of third-party reporting by witnesses that has added to increased numbers and is becoming more common in child abuse cases.

He credits this to increased awareness, especially as it relates to the law where witnesses who don’t speak up can be liable for criminal punishment.

According to the Child Protection Act, Part VI Care and Protection of Children Supervision Orders: “63. (1) Every person who has information indicating that a child is suffering or has suffered significant harm, shall forthwith report that information to the Director,” the law states.

The legislation also identifies people inclusive of physicians, nurses, dentists, pharmacists or other healthcare professionals, teachers, school principals, counselors, social workers, youth recreational leaders, members of the clergy, childcare workers, police and probation officers, and youth care workers.

However, underreporting remains a key issue, according to Smith.

He noted that Bahamian society often exhibited public outrage on child abuse issues that were short-lived or subsided before legislative action could be implemented.

“If we look at Marco’s Law, Marco died in what I think 2011,” he said.

“It took two years to get legislation from that, and then it took another eight years for us to get full implementation as a result of that. So we’re not actionable.

“We’ve become outraged in sense of our child abuse cases, but we don’t take action with the nation.”

Smith added that when it comes to perpetrators of child abuse being tried before the courts, the number of persons charged often does not balance out with the number of children who have been abused, therefore, in this instance he believes that the courts need to ramp up efforts to bring justice for minors.

“Well, yes, all persons are persons who are arrested and tried,” he said.

“But the reality is if we look at the number of cases that come before the court of persons being charged with child abuse and or child neglect, and we compare those statistics for that year, we don’t see the balance.

“So what that tells us is every person who has been investigated and or determined by the Department of Social Services to have abused and neglected a child doesn’t necessarily end up before the court.

Smith added: “And for that, I say that the criminal justice system definitely needs to play a much more active role in how we protect our children if we are going to become serious about child protection in this country.”