Housing First? Protecting Street-Connected Children from Sexual Abuse and Violent Sexual Acts in Bangladesh

Background

Sexual abuse is a grave concern for millions of homeless children living on the streets of the global south. Recent studies from Asia, Africa, and Latin America observed that this population experiences a high rate of sexual abuse Most quantitative studies report incidence and predictors of sexual abuse. Qualitative studies generally offer more complex stories. These studies are important, but they do not share a full story on types, frequency, and predictors of sexual abuse or where and how perpetrators violate children. The current mixed-methods study from Bangladesh sheds light on these issues.

Methods:

Informed by the methodologies of the authors’ previous studies, a sequential mixed-methods design was adopted. A quantitative survey explored the magnitude of the abuse, and a qualitative approach revealed the contexts and processes of abuse. The research team worked closely with a local service agency to recruit participants. A standardized interview protocol containing a Sexual Abuse Index (SAI) and demographic variables was employed. The items of SAI were based on validated scales. For the qualitative component, an open-ended questionnaire was used that focused on context of the violence (i.e., who, when, where, and how). A total of 592 children participated in the survey, and 32 of them were interviewed qualitatively. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPPS software and thematic analysis was used to analyze qualitative interviews. Ethical approval was obtained from a US university.

Findings:

Survey findings demonstrated an array of sexual abuse and rape. Seventy-five percent children were subjected to forced kissing, 99% were victims of salacious talk; 97% were forced to look at pornography; 87% were victims of unwanted touch of private parts, and most importantly 84% were victim rape. A linear regression analysis (F = 64.262, p <.001)identified four significant predictors - shelter (p <.001), gender (p <.001), age (p = .04), and family poverty status (p = .01) - of sexual abuse. Logistic regression analyses identified the predictors of rape and found that age (children 13 years or older, p = .003), night shelter (p = .003), and gender (p <.001), were significant predictors of rape or gang rape.

Qualitative findings showed that children were sexually assaulted by every group of people in their surroundings. Though children could be victims at any time, “nights are most fearful of all time when peoples’ real face come out” as shared by a participant. Participants who slept alone in isolated corners were subjected to kidnap and rape. Perpetrators may lure children with various promises and rape them. Any protest results in additional physical assault including severe beating and kicking or in some instances attempted murder (i.e., by pushing out of a running train or even throwing out the victim in the river).

Conclusions and Implications:

Findings imply that sleeping in an unprotected place is a strong predictor of increased rape and sexual violence prevention requires immediate housing of these children in a safe place of their choice.