Citation

Muthaphuli P. Child Abuse Res. South Afr. 2017; 18(2): 40-49.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2017, South African Professional Society on the Abuse of Children)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is a pervasive problem that affects the physical and psychosocial health of children. It is unique as it impacts society across socioeconomic lines. Childhood experiences of SGBV have been documented as a predictor for future crime perpetrated by these children, necessitating the development of interventions that both break the cycle of violence and rehabilitate youth offenders. A 10-year analysis of data collected by the Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme (TVEP) was undertaken to determine rates of child-perpetrated SGBV in Thulamela municipality. Disaggregated results informed the need for programming tailored for young perpetrators, which resulted in the pilot of a diversion programme based upon the Boy Scouts "camp" model. TVEP collected parent/guardian consent to include 20 young perpetrators in the project. The diversion programme yielded empirically evidenced behavioural and attitude change-related successes thus far. The adolescents, parents and guardians compliment project activities and recommend a roll out to more participants.

Language: en