Situation Analysis on Sexual Abuse (2)

II.	Analysis of Interventions for Further Actions
	2.1	Interventions in the legal framework
		1.	According to Thai laws, parents are entitled to having custody and complete legal act over children. An idea for intervention at this point would be encouraging surveillance studies and evaluations of the existing Thai laws regarding violence against children to find out whether the laws indeed protect children's rights as they should. If not, drafting of new laws to protect children from violence and sexual abuse must be initiated, regardless if this will mean reducing or eliminating parents' endless power over their children As vie of immediate results, GOs and NGOs working with children will gain access to children in need.
		2.	When a child is to identify a suspect of an act of violence against her, she and her identity must be protected. A face-to-face meeting with suspects to identify an offendant must not go on. Being photographed and shown on front page newspaper as victims or suspects must not be allowed. Urgent changes as such to protect children's rights need to be in placed and practiced as regulations.
		3.	Do follow ups and analysis on law enforcement process and develop some mechanism to support involved officials so they can better enforce the laws. Begin the studies from when an incident is reported at a police station, to when the charge is taken to court, and on to attitudes of law enforcement officers in order to find out of how important the issue is for the officers and how it is viewed by the legal system. It is also essential to organize workshops and training's for the authorities so they are equipped with knowledge, skills and right attitudes to work with sexually abused victims.
		4.	Study and analyze former verdicts of sexually assault / rape / and other forms of sexually abuse cases to see how the issue of sexual abuse is taken in the Thai court of law. The main goal is to re-engage effective ways to provide justice for women and children who are victims of sexually abuse.
	2. 2	Interventions in the policy/programme framework
		One agency under the Department of Welfare and the other under the Police Department are the only 2 government agencies working on the issue of child sexual abuse in Thailand. The agencies however conduct mostly routine work and do not have clear policy on servicing the actual problems and responding to the actual needs. The non-government organizations have greater inputs but are limited to the number of locations for and big cities. Suggestions for interventions are:
		1.	The government should establish shelters and/or support existing NGOs to establish shelters for sexually abused women and children in need for refuge. In the meantime, the government can help strengthening referral system between NGOs and state-funded health institutions. The government should also support the network in which other agencies are taking on to help women and children.
		2.	The government must take actions in producing more personnels with expertise in dealing with abused population and their family, and in supporting health institutions in the counseling and therapy services they have available. Promote family therapy to learn from the domestic violence between husband and wife, and parents and children in order to better serve the clients. Organize short course trainings to rehabilitate victims of abuse and others involved.
		3.	The government should direct its policy for education and mass communication to up-lifting productive and equal relationship between men and women in the society. I he government must start campaign via different sources of media to stop violence against women and children and have a clear policy to pass necessary new laws and/or change existing laws to maintain true justice for the victims. Furthermore, the government can tighten up law enforcement process and to stop discrimination against women and children.
	2.3	Interventions in the civil society/family framework
		1.	Publicly campaign for loving and understanding relationship among family members and promote appropriate social values regarding sex and gender relations. The campaign and promotion should be systematically constructed in corporation between family, community and national level. Concrete examples and actions are such as a program to persuade general men population fight against violence against women, strategies to bring domestic violence out to the public, development of new ways to present non-discriminating news and avoid news that provoke violence in the society. Create mechanism for women and children prefect themselves against violence through building self-confidence and self-esteem. Promote and sup port a free-from-violence communities and provide help for victims of abuse.
		2.	There should be more studies to specifically and thoroughly research on the issue of sexual violence and other forms of violence in order to have a better understanding of the situations, the roots of complicated issues involve. and to be able to develop ways to communicate with individuals in the society in order to prevent sexual violence. There should also be a development of strong and efficient data base capacity building which could consequently serve as firm backups to fight against sexual abuse in the society.
		Endnotes
		1.	This report intends to exclude the discussion of trafficking of girls and women into prostitution in Thailand as one form of child sexual abuse. There is a separate chapter this book dealing with present phenomenon of child prostitution.
		2.	Kritaya Archavanitkul (1996). Violence Against Women: Covered, Disclosed, and Silent Dangers on Every Path of Women's Life. A paper presented in the National Conference on Reconstructing the Conceptual Framework on Women's Health', organized by Women's Health Advocacy Network (WHAN), Health Policy Studies Centre, Mahidol University, June 13-14, SD Avenue Hotel, Bangkok. (in Thai).
		3.	Patchara Siriwongrungsan and Somsak Pukdeewong (1995). 'Prevalence of Sexually transmitted Diseases among Prepubertal Girls Attending Bangrak Hospital, Bangkok ' Journal of Health Sciences. Vol. 4, No. 2. (in Thai).
		4.	Kritaya Archavanitkul and Varapron Chamsanit ( 1995) Thai Male Teenagers and the Buying of Sex: A Pilot Study for the Possibility of Setting New Social Values. Chiengmai: Women's Studies Centre of Chiengmai University (in Thai).
		5.	Sanitsuda Eckachai (1990) 'Rape who gets the punishment?' Bangkok Post. Vol. XLV No.234:29.
		6.	Ursula Pattberg (1994). Weaving New Life: An Evaluation. Unpublished research report submitted to Foundation For Women, Bangkok.
		7.	Waraporn Kongchareon (1987). A Study of Related Professional Agents' Views for Rape Victims and Services. Unpublished MA Thesis, Faculty of Social Welfare, Thammasat University. (in Thai).