Shine A Light on Child Abuse in Kenya

Childline has continued to serve children relentlessly. In July to September 2021, a total of 66,734 cases have been listened to and support provided as necessary. These cases included those presenting various child protection issues including reports of violence against children and abuse; requests for counselling and other psychosocial support; and requests for information on various child protection issues.  Out of the over 66,000 cases managed there were a total of 415 child survivors of violence and abuse. One such case is presented as a case study below. We are able to support these children thanks to the immense support we receive through GlobalGiving directly and the donors who choose to support us directly as an organization and through the GlobalGiving platforms. For this support we are forever grateful.

What does the case address/or bring out?

The following case study clearly shows the role of Childline Kenya's partners, and specifically the Kenya Police Service in this instance, in handling cases of affected children, in the best interest of the child, by dealing with underlying issues even when there is inadequate evidence to pursue a case through court.

The case in summary

A four-year-old boy was allegedly slapped by a neighbor after he spit on this neighbor from a balcony as he was passing. The aggrieved mother to the child called the child helpline in fury demanding that the said neghbour be arrested and charged in court for physical assault. For meaningful conversation to take place, the helpline counselor employed the relevant skills to calm the mother down first. An appointment was then agreed for the following day for a detailed discussion of the case after it had been determined that the child was not in any immediate danger.

During the meeting the following day the helpline counselor accompanied the mother and child to the police station to record their statement as best as they could. In the process of telling the story, several inconsistencies were noted and confronted by the police. When asked for any witnesses to the incident, none were identified except the boy, whose narration was not flowing either, based on age and therefore the ability to recall the incident and retell the story. It became very difficult to put together a watertight case. There was no medical report as well to substantiate the claims as the child not been attended to at a medical, and even though it would be very difficult to ascertain the impact of a slap on a medical report unless there is scarring. It was also established that the child’s mother and the accused neighbor had historical conflict that has remained unresolved sparking different reactions. It was not clear whether this was therefore a case of one getting back at the other in relation to the historical conflicts.

It was therefore agreed that the case would not be taken to court, for lack of adequate evidence to support an assault case, but the mother and her neighbor would attend at least three counseling sessions to deal with their friction. Childline recommended to them some partners who also provide psychosocial support to adults. It was also recommended that one of them moves out of the rental units to diffuse the tension. Finally, the child would also go through assessment by the Childline counselor and go through therapy to deal with any resultant trauma from the incident and the subsequent events.

The strength of Childline Kenya’s work lies in its partnerships. Partners play a critical role in all aspects of delivery of our services. Partners go far beyond our funding partners and child protection service providers and comprise of members of the community including children themselves. The community is a critical partnership base that usually notices a child protection concern first, and decides to seek help on behalf of the child in need to ensure the child situation changes positively. These are great champions in child protection. I’d like to share with you one case of a community child protection champion who took the burden on behalf of a 3-month old abandoned baby.

In a town on the western side of Kenya a baby was heard crying by a neighbor for a long time, almost an hour. The neighbor wondered about this unusual occurrence and went to check whether the baby was OK or whether the mother needed assistance with the baby. The neighbor found the baby left alone in the single-roomed house on the floor with only some tattered cloth around him and visibly shaking from the cold. The baby was 3 months old. The neighbour panicked and called the Child Helpline service by dialing 116. The counselor on the other end of the line calmed her down and gave her step by step instructions on how to handle the situation. At the counselor’s instruction she wrapped the baby in a blanket to keep him warm and also gave him some milk to calm him down. While she calmed the baby down, the helpline counselor got in touch with the nearest children officer in the area to assist with reporting the case to the police and to facilitate placement of the child in a safe shelter as they trace his mother or other relatives. The life of this baby was thus saved, thanks to the concern of the child protection champion aka neighbor.

We therefore appreciate all our partners including those who take action to report the cases and bring relief to children in need; those who provide direct services to children in need of care and protection; those who provide technical support to increasingly improve Childline Kenya’s efficiency and effectiveness; and the funding partners who ensure there’s adequate funding to keep the Child Helpline service functional with qualified counselors 24/7. Indeed, it takes a village to raise a child.