by Rod Hughes
On an average this year, 15 children per day are treated in public hospitals and clinics for the effects of abuse, a recent study shows. Abuse is numbered among five reasons for seeking treatment that are required to be reported by hospitals and clinics to the Ministry of Health.
This figure, topping 6,000 so far this year, is astounding in a culture that deeply cares for its children. These cases account for 35% of the 15,000 cases of medical treatment of intrafamilial abuse. “The most chilling part of this number is that it includes babies who have yet to reach their first birthday,” said Roy Wong, who compiled the study.
The only reasons for seeking medical treatment for children more frequently are traffic accidents, hypertension, (surprisingly) workplace accidents and dengue fever. The majority of the little girls are treated for sexual abuse, the boys for blows.