Cases of child abuse continue to increase

Dr Noura Ali-Al-Omair conducts the workshop

KUWAIT CITY, April 3: Deputy Director of Forensic Medicine Dr Noura Ali Al-Omair, said a father had frequently sexually assaulted his two daughters — 12 and 14 years old — respectively in return for simple gifts.During a workshop at the Judicial Institute on the issues of ill-treatment and neglect of children, she said, it was only a coincidence that his crime was revealed and is now being looked into by the judiciary.“It is most shocking,” she said, “that this is not the only case, but there is also another case about a grandfather who had sex with his granddaughter and most serious cases of sexual abuse are from relatives,” Al-Omair added.She went on to say, the concept of violence and abuse of children is numerous. “Cases of child abuse and neglect continue to increase every year, with 35 per cent being subjected to physical violence, 20 per cent to sexual violence and 55 per cent to verbal violence in Kuwait,” she said.