CAIRO: A staggering report released by Awlad Al Ard Association for Human Rights, revealed that August has seen a record number of 29 incidents of violence against children in Egypt.
The most horrifying case in Suez saw a driver drown his three daughters because he couldn’t feed them.
The number of cases has almost doubled, with 16 reported in July.
The incidents resulted in 21 deaths, seven reported kidnappings and two rapes, according to the report which monitored the issue throughout the month.
One of the rape crimes reportedly took place in Tahrir Square, where an unemployed man attacked a child behind the Omar Makram Mosque.
Twenty-one of the incidents took place in the Delta region, accounting for more than 70 percent. They include six cases in Cairo, four in Giza, three in Qalubiya, two in Alexandria, two in Damietta, as well as one in each of the governorates of Sharqiya, Beheira, Suez and Menufiya.
The remaining eight cases occurred in Upper Egypt, three in Minya, two in Luxor and one in each of the governorates of Qena, Sohag and Beni Suef.
The report stated that 12 of the cases were incidents of domestic violence, while negligence came in second, accounting for seven cases.
A World Health Organization (WHO) report released in 2010 estimates that 40 million children below the age of 15 worldwide suffer from abuse and neglect and require health and social care.
A survey on Egypt also released in the same year showed that 37 percent of children were reportedly beaten or tied up by their parents, while 26 percent reported injuries such as fractures, loss of consciousness or permanent disability as a result of this, according to the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF).
The month of August has also recorded an all-year high in kidnappings including seven cases.
“Those wanted by the police and thugs seem to be taking advantage of the security vacuum and are kidnapping children to blackmail their parents or guardians,” the report explained.
“The goals of the January uprising have not been met; there is no social justice yet,” concluded the report.
