More needs to be done to combat child sex abuse: NGOs

Four non-governmental organisations on Thursday called on the government to further amend child sexual abuse laws to enhance protection for children. The four NGOs – Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women, Hong Kong Committee on Children's Right, Plan International Hong Kong, and TALK Hong Kong – said more needs to be done to combat child sexual abuse. One of the groups, TALK Hong Kong, said a study it recently conducted found that around one in six children suffered from some form of sexual abuse. Its founder, Taura Edgar, urged the authorities to create a "persistent child sexual abuse" offence to address long-term cases. "Persistent child sexual abuse, is really to help children who have been abused multiple times, probably over quite a period, so that they only have to testify about the first, the last, and maybe some in-between points, instead of the system we have now, which asks them to very specifically remember each one in great detail," Edgar said. The groups also proposed introducing a new offence to prevent children from being abused by people of authority, such as teachers or care workers. Other suggested reforms include making the court process more child-friendly, by putting in place stricter rules on cross-examination and demanding extra care while handling child victims. Edited by Priscilla Ng