Unspoken shame

Shocking cases of child sex abuse have dominated news headlines in the past year. While authorities focus on harsher punishments for perpetrators, experts say society's attitude toward victims is the bigger problem. Liu Zhihua reports.

When prosecuting and public security authorities jointly released an order on Oct 24 stipulating harsher punishment for perpetrators of sexual assault against minors under 12, the move was greeted with enthusiasm from the public. But experts warn that sex education is still urgently needed to protect children from being abused. This year, news headlines have been dominated by stories of children, both girls and boys, being sexually abused, mostly by teachers and acquaintances.

Although there are no national statistics, in Guangdong alone, more than 2,500 girls, half of them under the age of 14, have been sexually abused over the past three years, according to China News Agency.