A series of news releases from the Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) in recent weeks has raised increased concern about the country’s nagging problem of child abuse.

Between January 18 and February 11 the CPFSA highlighted seven instances of abuse, the majority of which occurred in the first four weeks of the year, which were being investigated, and for which it had offered victims psychological support.

The cases include a girl seen in a video that went viral on social media being stomped on by a woman; the alleged rape of a seven-year-old girl by her 26-year-old male cousin in Trelawny; a 12-year-old girl who was abducted and sexually assaulted in St James; a 14-year-old student who was reportedly attacked by a 42-year-old security guard at a bus stop in St Andrew; an 11-year-old girl seen in a video being beaten with a piece of bamboo by her father; the alleged rape of a 15-year-old girl by a security guard whom she met online; and the reported rape of a 15-year-old girl by a bike taxi operator in Westmoreland.

Last week, data from the CPFSA revealed that there were 1,226 reports of child abuse recorded by the National Children’s Registry (NCR) in the first month of 2024. Of that number, 338 were reports of sexual abuse, 301 physical abuse, and 476 related to neglect. The majority of reports, 208, were recorded in Kingston and St Andrew; followed by St Catherine, 183; and St Ann with 130.

While the numbers indicate a decline compared to the 1,540 reports made during the same period last year, Lesia Bhagwandat-Vassell, deputy registrar of the NCR, says the agency remains concerned that the number of reports are too high.

“The concern is there, so we continue to do public education with a hope to see that number go down a little more than what we are seeing for January 2024,” she told the Jamaica Observer.

“We have been having parenting sessions; we have been having child safety sessions in schools, so we have been talking to the children. We have been talking to teachers in the early childhood sector, just talking to various groups about what child abuse is, talking to the parents and guardians and people in general about how to prevent [child abuse],” she added.

The deputy registrar further expressed concern that the decline in cases might be attributed to individuals withholding reports of abuse.

“Sometimes we get the sense that some persons are fearful of making these reports, fearful of any repercussions, fearful that we will be coming to remove the children; some are even fearful of their own lives…We still have that ‘informa fi dead’ culture, and persons do not wish to report because of that,” said Bhagwandat-Vassell.

She urged Jamaicans to report instances of child abuse despite fear, stressing the importance of protecting the nation’s children.

Consultant Psychiatrist Dr Aggrey Irons, while explaining the various impacts that abuse can have on a child at different stages of their development, noted that the ramifications of this epidemic extend far beyond individual trauma.

“The first job that a parent or an adult or anybody in the life of a child, the first thing we have to do is to help our infants achieve a sense of trust
— trust that people will be kind to them, somebody will feed them, somebody will clothe them, somebody will look after them until they can start looking after themselves,” he told the Sunday Observer.

“This trust is very important, because if you are abused so early, and if your life is set up in a way that you are a child who distrusts just about everything and everybody, you’re getting set for a very miserable existence,” he added.

Dr Irons pointed out that when a child is abused at the autonomy stage
— ages two to three
— this interferes with the development of their identity, self-worth, and independence, while abuse at the initiative stage
— ages three to five
— can lead to feelings of guilt and self-doubt.

“And even when that continues, the feelings of self-doubt and shame and guilt, especially as it attaches to sexual behaviour, it’s really tragic, and it can have a terrible outcome later on when they get to a higher level,” said Dr Irons.

He noted that children who have been abused at the high school level develop a sense of inferiority and often act out in schools. They may also become promiscuous if they are sexually abused and develop abusive traits themselves.

“Now, this incomplete and troubled person, we expect them to get into the world and be generative and productive, but it is very difficult to do that, and what is interesting is that when persons
— boys or girls
— have been abused, it drives a lot of negative feelings internally, and they become very troubled and ripe for violence and manipulation later on,” he explained.

Dr Irons noted that Jamaica, like many other countries, is plagued with a lot of social issues that possibly stem from a long-standing issue of abuse that continues to impact the behaviour of its citizens in their adult years and result in the development of various societal issues.

“You have serious pockets of poverty and people treating each other in a depersonalised way. The value of life is diminished, and people are murdering each other literally at the drop of a hat. People can’t step on people’s Clarks by accident. The teachers in the schools do not generate the respect that they used to and that they deserve, and boys and girls are indulging in all kinds of premature sexual behaviour. That’s what Jamaica looks like now,” Dr Irons said, adding that urgent intervention is needed from the nation’s leaders to address the issue before it gets worse.

Moreover, Dr Irons stressed the importance of counselling and providing support to victims of abuse, stressing that without adequate intervention, affected individuals would struggle to positively contribute to society.

“Counselling is a way of reconstructing their problem-solving behaviours. It is a way of helping them to regain their self-esteem. It is a way of helping them to heal from whatever depression anxiety may have been generated, helping them to recover from what is a severe post-traumatic stress disorder,” he said.

Dr Irons further advocated community intervention, noting that it is the responsibility of every citizen to protect the nation’s children.

In each of the news releases highlighting the cases, the CPFSA appealed to Jamaicans to report instances of child abuse. The agency also reminded adults that they need to be the voice of reason when dealing with children, especially during times of conflict.

“Children live what they learn, so it is important that we find alternative and more positive ways of approaching them. We cannot meet them with violence and expect them to grow into adults that can peacefully resolve conflict,” the CPFSA said.

Reports of child abuse can be made using the 24-hour child abuse reporting hotline 211, or via WhatsApp/text at (876)878-2882, e-mail report@childprotection.gov.jm, or by visiting any CPFSA parish office. The CPFSA social media pages (
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter) @cpfsajm are also available for citizens to make reports.