But it ended when her schoolteacher knew about it, and the 8-year-old was brought to Antardrishti, a project of Childreach Nepal, combating ingrained social stigmas surrounding sexual abuses to children.[break]
Antardrishti, a shelter house for abused children that started in 2007, is now home to 11 girls who are in the process of overcoming their shocking past. The organization provides them not only with shelter but also education and ways to lead normal lives.
At a time when victims of sexual abuse, especially children, were being neglected, the organization was “established to provide mental justice” to the children, said Binita Adhikari, founder director of Antardrishti.
“Antardrishti’s main purpose is to get victimized children away from the environment of abuse so they aren’t victimized again,” Adhikari said. “They have to build up confidence and recover.”
And in order to boost confidence, self-esteem and make the children socialize, the organization frequently hosts programs so they can mingle with others.
And to have such children socializing with others, nine of the 11 girls from Antardrishti, along with other participants, gathered for a wall climbing session at the Nepal Himalayan Adventure Climbing in Balaju, Kathmandu.
As the girls climbed to get some of the gifts that hung on the wall, observers and fellow friends cheered them.
Outdoor sports as such this help the girls to explore their inner strength, and sports can be used as a recovery therapy, said Susmita Maskey, coordinator for the wall-climbing event, and ambassador for Childreach Nepal, a UK-based children’s charity organization.
“It [outdoor activities] helps them to concentrate on their strength, physically and mentally,” Maskey, who is also an Everest climber, said.
Rajani Bharati, counselor at Antardrishti, pointed out that victims of sexual abuse tend to have behavioral changes, and there are clear symptoms that could be detected among children.
“Usually, victims of sexual abuse tend to play less and aren’t very interactive,” Bharati said.
She also added that the organization is trying to get the children more involved in such activities so they can interact with others and “feel normal like other children.”
One of the major problems, the counselor reiterated, is that children with sexual abuse tend to seclude themselves from the rest, which deprives them of their childhood, growth and development. And Sabina’s case is similar because of which she has been in the shelter for 15 months, while usually girls at Antardrishti stay for a year in the course of their rehabilitation.
And after their time at Antardrishti, where they are educated and made aware of the situation so that it doesn’t happen again, Adhikari said, their parents are responsible for them. She also informed about the organization’s parental counseling wherein they are taught on how to handle the situation and help their children overcome it.
In Nepal, cases of sexual abuse are still not discussed and/or revealed due to social stigmas. And it is the capital city of Kathmandu from where a substantial number of cases are being reported, Adhikari said, adding that there should be more strict law enforcement so that abusers can’t get away merely with monetary fines. Bharati and Maskey agreed.
“Abusers go to jail and come out. But there’s no substantial punishment for them while the children, who go through abuses, are scarred for life,” Bharati said.
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