Gender Minister Zenysha Shaheed Zaki has stated that the cases of child abuse and negligence reported are increasing day by day, and that this is an issue on which both government entities and the public must be more weary of.
Speaking at the workshop started last Saturday to increase awareness in Ministry employees on how to deal with such cases, the Minister said that amount of child abuse cases has failed to decrease even with the best efforts of the government, and that this is becoming an increasing worry.
"We still have to put lots of effort into stopping this. Abuse cases are being reported in worrying amounts," the Minister said.
While cases of negligence and abuse remain high, statistics show that 340 cases of physical, sexual and psychological abuse of children under 18 have been reported in Male' alone, and 131 cases have been reported about abuse to those over 18 years of age.
The Minister said that the standard must improve of those working against such crimes. She said that the setbacks faced by those working these cases must be found and solutions to those setbacks must be discussed.
The ongoing five day workshop is a joint effort of UNICEF and the Gender Ministry. Employees from family and children service centers in 19 atolls around the Maldives are taking place in this workshop along with over 28 employees of the Gender Ministry.