violence against children WORLD REPORT ON - CRIN

120Violence against children in schools and educational settingsHIV and sexual violenceIn sub-Saharan African countries, the averagerate of HIV prevalence among girls andyoung women 15 to 24 years old is now threetimes higher than the average rate amongboys and young men of that age. 52 Sexual violenceis increasingly recognised, although stillunder-studied, as an important factor in theseincreases.An analysis of data from the Global School-Based Student Health Survey (GSHS) foundthat in Namibia, 19% of both boys and girlsanswered ‘yes’ when asked if they had “ever beenphysically forced to have sex.” In Swaziland, 9%of boys and 10% of girls said ‘yes’; in Uganda,13% of boys and 25% of girls; in Zambia, 30%of boys and 31% of girls; in Zimbabwe, 11%of boys and 14% of girls. 53 In 1999, researchbased on a sample of 10,000 schoolgirls inKenya found that one-third were sexually activeand that, of those, 40% said their first encounterwas forced, usually by a male student. 54More recent research in Burkina Faso, Ghana,Malawi, and Uganda found, however, thatforced sex and vulnerability to HIV infectionwere more prevalent among married adolescentsthan among unmarried adolescents. 55 In manysub-Saharan African countries, the majority ofadolescent girls are not in school and betweenone-quarter and one-half of them are married,often to much older men. 56 In Ethiopia, girlsoften see attendance at school as a way to avoidearly and unwanted marriage. 57Forced sex is a risk factor for HIV/AIDS. Thisis a growing concern in the context of schoolsIn Eastern and Southern Africa (as in otherregions), the Regional Consultation held for theStudy identified sexual harassment and abuseby students and teachers, usually male, againstfemale students as major problems. Participantsof the Consultation attested to cases of teacherspromising higher grades in exchange forsex with girls, and also that girls who becomepregnant as a result of sexual abuse by teachersor students are often expelled from school. Insome countries, marriage of a pregnant girl toher abuser may absolve him of legal responsibility,increasing the risks of forced marriage.A study conducted by UNICEF found thatsuch sexual abuse was common in all countriesof West and Central Africa, and that Ministriesof Education were aware of it and consideredit to be one of the main reasons whygirls drop out of school. 58 A Human RightsWatch study found that sexual harassmentand abuse of girls by teachers and studentsin South African schools was widespread andthat girls were raped in school toilets, emptyclassrooms, dormitories and hostels. 59 In arecent survey in Ghana, 6% of schoolgirlssaid teachers had blackmailed them, threateningto give them lower grades if they refusedto have sexual relations. Two-thirds of themhad not reported the incidents due to feelingsof shame, advice that they should be tolerant,and their belief that no action would betaken against the culprits. A small percentageof boys had experienced sexual harassment,too. Of the boys, 24% admitted they had participatedin rape, including gang rape. Of thegirls, 14% said they had been raped by boysclose to them. 60