The National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) said that it has received close to 10,000 complaints regarding child abuse over the course of last year (2023).
NCPA Chairman Udayakumara Amarasinghe said that as many as 9,434 complaints were received between 1 January and 31 December 2023, as opposed to the 7,466 complaints received in 2022.
Among these are 2,242 complaints of cruelty, 472 on sexual abuse, 404 on severe sexual abuse, 51 on the rape of female children, and six on using children for obscene posts, he said. In addition, complaints were also received with regard to child exploitation, trafficking, domestic abuse, neglect, and kidnapping.
Amarasinghe said that these complaints have been forwarded to the respective authorities for onward legal action.
Meanwhile, he emphasised that discussions are in progress to amend certain existing laws to crack down on child abuse.