Cracks in the Silence - Sexual violence against children and challenges to accessing justice in Mon State and Mon areas of southeast Burma - Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)

Description: 

"Since 2013, the number of reported cases of violence, particularly sexual violence, toward children in Burma has increased dramatically. So too is this the case in Mon State and Mon areas of Burma. HURFOM itself has seen a significant increase in the number of cases of violence toward children received between 2013 and 2016. However, due to the shame and stigma associated with sexual violence, as well as the challenges faced when accessing justice in Burma?s complex, pluralistic legal system, it is likely that the number is much higher than actually documented. This report by HURFOM?s Women and Child Rights Project (WCRP) analyzes 20 cases of violence toward children received from Mon State and Mon areas of southeast Burma between December 2013 and January 2017. The types of violence ranged from rape to human trafficking; however, in the majority of cases sexual violence was identified as the primary motive. While HURFOM acknowledges the small size of the dataset, this report aims to provide a platform for community perspectives on issues that they have identified as important to them, rather than to make general conclusions regarding the phenomenon. While analyzing the cases, interesting patterns in how families navigated the pluralistic legal system in Burma emerged, as well as a number of challenges they face when accessing justice while reporting a crime involving sexual violence. Thus, this report looks not only at individual cases, but also at the challenges villagers face when pursuing justice and the forms of agency, both individual and collective, they use to overcome these obstacles. This report is divided into six main sections. After the Introduction (Chapter 1) and Methodology (Chapter 2), this report provides a basic overview of the legal and administrative structures that deal with crime of a sexual nature. Furthermore, it provides brief examination of Burma?s international and domestic obligations to protect children. Next, Trends in Violence toward Children (Chapter 4) are provided including types of violence, perpetrators, and reporting chains, after which Voices of Villagers (Chapter 5) are presented, including individual and collective forms of agency, and perspectives on the increase in reports of sexual violence and challenges to accessing justice. Finally, Recommendations (Chapter 6) for the Burma government, including local government and administrative departments, the New Mon State Party (NMSP), as well as communitybased organizations (CBOs) are provided..."

Source/publisher: 

WOMEN AND CHILD RIGHTS PROJECT (WCRP) THE HUMAN RIGHTS FOUNDATION OF MONLAND (HURFOM)

Date of Publication: 

2017-03-00

Date of entry: 

2017-03-25

Grouping: 

  • Individual Documents

Category: 

Language: 

Burmese (မြန်မာဘာသာ)

Local URL: 

Format: 

pdf

Size: 

4.76 MB