handling disclosures

Nancyline Pinalba Agaid

Senior Trainer

Stairway Foundation Inc.

objectives

Gain awareness of personal readiness

to deal with the issue of child sexual

abuse (CSA)

Review Knowledge, Attitude, Skills, and

Ethics with regards to working with

victims of child sexual abuse

Learn basic communication skills and

strategies in dealing with CSA

survivors

Agree vs. Disagree

“Children are most often abused by strangers” “It is only considered abuse if it is violent”

“Children who are sexually abused enjoy it, otherwise they would tell or find ways to stop the abuse” “If a boy has erection or a girl did not complain during the sexual act, then it is not considered to be sexual abuse” “Children ask for these actions by being “seductive” or by “consenting” to the sexual acts”

Effects of Sexual Abuse

1 They are afraid others won’t believe them.

2 . They are afraid of getting into trouble

themselves. They feel it is their fault and/or

they caused the abuse to occur.

3 . They might fear threats made by the offender

(e.g. break-up of the family, Dad might have to go to

jail, fear of rejection by offender and/or

family, fear of retaliation).

4. Children may not know “how” to tell.

4. They may not know that sexual activity is wrong or even that it is something anyone would want to know about.

5. It was sexual abuse involving an adult and child of the same sex, they might fear being labeled as homosexual.

6. Some older children don’t know whom to tell.

7. Children may not feel there was an “appropriate” time or opportunity to tell.

8.They have been told that “nice girls/boys” don’t use those words that refer to body parts or sexual behavior.

1.The molestation escalates in frequency or type

of behavior and alarms the child.

2. The child receives some sexual abuse

prevention information and realizes that what

happened o him/her is wrong and should be

reported.

4. The victim’s younger brother or sister is now at the age

when the victim was first sexually abused, and the victim does not want him or her to be abused as well.

5. The child reaches adolescence and fears pregnancy; resents the offender’s efforts to control his or her dating life, etc.

6. The child encounters a caring adult he or she can trust, with whom she feels confident in disclosing to.

7. The child has a urinary infection or any other physical problem that causes him or her to seek medical care.

disclosure

• a child tells about being sexually abused

daughter a story of incest

kinds of disclosures

• intentional

• discovery

• accidental

intentional

• child purposefully discloses about the abuse

discovery

• child’s disclosure about physical or behavioral symptoms that lead to suspicion of abuse

accidental

• child tells someone (not an adult) about the abuse, and the secret spills out to others

While fellow nine-year-olds were learning the Three Rs in school, Krista (not her real name)

was conceiving a child somewhere in Mindanao. According to social workers, the baby

of Krista, the youngest mother in Philippine history, is the product of one or two years of

sexual abuse from the girl’s own father.

(Yahoo News July 24, 2013)

“The community at 'yung father (and even 'yung mother at one point) naniniwala na

supernatural ang pregnancy, hindi sa father. Kasi may nuno sa punso na

tumutubo nang tumutubo sa bahay nila,” the director explained. “So ang paniniwala

ng nanay, nanuno at hindi pregnancy.” ( “Cenimalaya Nuwebe”Yahoo News July 24, 2013)

goals of intervention

• healing (community workers, professional helpers)

• child protection (social workers, family services)

• legal response (police, court)

knowledge / skills needed during disclosure

• win child’s trust

• encourage the child to talk

• avoid leading questions

guidelines for dealing with disclosure

• listen

• believe the child

• stay calm

• provide a safe, private place to talk

• let the child know she is not alone

• don’t make promises

• don’t judge the offender

• let the child know what’s going to happen

• don’t investigate the child’s story

• report immediately

Judge…

You are a very bad

child for having sex

with your father!

Blame the victim…

You were raped

because you wore

mini-skirts. It’s your

fault!

Warn… You will regret it if

you do it. What do you think?

Deny feelings… Don’t feel that way. He’s your

father.

or change the subject.

Forget what happened to you, it’s in the past. Would you like to play

with me?

Art activities

The use of painting, drawing,

sculpture and other forms of

art as therapy

non-threatening

expresses feelings difficult to

put into words

issues at the time of disclosure

• child’s fears, shame, guilt, damaged goods, etc.

• child’s family

• abuser

• abuser’s family

• community

• the worker

DepEd Child Protection Policy Referral and Monitoring System

DepEd Order no. 40 Series of 2012

“annex D”

Complaint

School head/Principal

Child Protection Committee

Intake Sheet Referral System

(coordination of immediate response)

Monitoring System

For possible filing of

criminal action

PNP (women and

children’s protection

desk) LSWDO

DSWD Regional Office

(Crisis Intervention Unit)

*Assessment *Pyscho-social intervention *protective measures

*Other assistance

NGO and other govt. agencies

Division Office

Regional Office

Central Office

Consolidate reports on incidents and cases of all schools and submit a Division Report (Annex A) to the Regional Office

Consolidate reports on incidents and cases of the Division offices within the region and submit a

Regional Report (Annex A) to the Undersecretary for Legal Affairs

Central Repository of Regional Reports

*This system does not apply to administrative cases