Opinion: World can learn from Guyana’s fight against boys’ sexual abuse

Like the global #MeToo movement, Guyana’s 2010 Sexual Offences Act was instrumental in bringing about societal change in the attitude to abuse against women and girls in the country. Now, we need to ensure that we give boys experiencing sexual violence the same level of support. Blue Umbrella Day can help achieve that. When the Sexual Offences Act was passed into law in Guyana it marked a cultural turning point for survivors of sexual violence. Until the 2010 act, there was no charge for the rape of a male child in Guyana. Now, successful prosecutions could result in life imprisonment for the perpetrator. Globally, 1 in 13 boys experience sexual violence or exploitation before the age of 18. A UNICEF report into the sexual exploitation of boys noted that social norms are found to discourage boys from reporting sexual exploitation, make them less likely to be identified as victims, and have their abuse downplayed. In Guyana, while the Sexual Offences Act has been successful in creating societal change and increasing prosecutions, reporting of sexual violence against young boys remains loaded with stigma and shame. And, while April 16’s Blue Umbrella Day — an initiative of Family for Every Child, a global alliance of children’s organizations — seeks to shine a light on this hidden epidemic, it also aims to share the lessons learned and replicable successes achieved in Guyana. Sexual abuse of boys in Guyana Guyana has a population of about 800,000, and statistics compiled by the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security in 2021 revealed over 400 boys were abused in the first quarter of that year. Over 100 of these boys were aged between 3 and 4. “I'm sure you'll agree with me that the tendency has been to pay more attention to the girls and protect them, while we show less consideration to the boys,” Dr. Vindhya Persaud, minister of human services and social security, said in a statement at the time. “While it is true that more girls are abused, sexually and otherwise, let's not be deceived into thinking that the same thing doesn't happen to boys.” Physical punishment against children remains common in Guyana: 70% of children aged 1 to 14 have experienced physical punishment or psychological aggression from caregivers. A cultural fear of violence of adults against children combined with the global societal issues that prevent boys from speaking out illustrate the magnitude of the progress Guyana has made in bringing this issue of sexual abuse toward boys to the fore. As UNICEF notes in its study of sexual violence against children in Guyana: “Better understanding of what makes a belief a social norm and decreasing harmful practices will contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals.” A framework for success Recommendations identified in a 2018 scoping study to support boys experiencing sexual violence included better collaboration among agencies. It’s this multistakeholder approach that has seen Guyana make a huge amount of progress in protecting young boys from sexual abuse. ChildLinK; the Childcare and Protection Agency, which is part of Guyana’s Ministry of Human Services and Social Security; the Ministry of Public Health of Guyana; UNICEF; the Delegation of the European Union in Guyana; the judiciary and prosecution services; the police and other local stakeholders have all worked together to create a major shift in the approach to victims of child sexual abuse. The creation of Child Advocacy Centers, led by the CPA, have been central to the success of the initiative. There are now 14 centers across Guyana, with at least one in each of the country’s 10 regions. Specialist children’s courts have been established and police and medical professionals trained. The CACs now operate as a single unit where boys can go to report their abuse — an approach that places the child’s welfare at the heart of the process. Every center has a forensic interviewer, who compiles the single report that will be used throughout the whole prosecution, with support from counselors, police and medical professionals all following established protocols. We know it’s working, because boys are coming into the centers and reporting their abuse. But we still have a very long way to go. A community solution to a global problem We have a multistakeholder model that works and can be replicated. The partnership between government institutions and civil society organizations is key to seriously tackling the issue of child safety and protection from sexual abuse. Now, we need to focus our collective efforts on prevention the world over. This involves: • Ensuring parenting skills education is available for parents from multiple agencies and institutions (health, education, and social services) where they are likely to access services. • Designing initiatives that work with community leaders, with consideration for the cultural norms and sensitivities and indigenous settings. • Sharing resources that help us to reach young people before they become parents. Robust reporting The figures I’ve quoted aren’t recent and I can’t give you the current conviction rates of sexual abuse perpetrators, because we don’t have the resources to monitor that information. One reason for this, identified by the Family for Every Child scoping study, is that sociocultural norms related to childhood, gender, masculinity and sexuality perpetuate sexual violence affecting boys, increase their vulnerability to sexual violence, and contribute to underreporting. Help from specialist academics — detailed analysis of reasons, reporting and conviction rates — is desperately needed. Reporting needs to be much more robust to ensure we can focus our resources where they’re needed the most. Blue Umbrella Day This year’s Blue Umbrella Day will stage a series of events and social media campaigns around the world. Organizations can get involved using resources freely available, which include key messaging and online and offline resources to reach global communities. ChildLinK has also created The One Thousand Boys project, through which we aim to help survivors share their stories and raise awareness among their peers and within their communities and ensure every child in Guyana has access to support. We have the structure and the momentum. We need to ensure that society places the blame and shame where it should lie — on the perpetrators of abuse.