violence against children WORLD REPORT ON - CRIN

176Violence against Children in care and justice institutionsIll-treatment – and outright negligence – stemsnot only from the typical overcrowding, squalidconditions and lack of resources invested in thecare of these girls and boys. As importantly,there is often a profound degree of discriminationagainst children who end up in institutions.The lack of public concern about brutalitytowards children in correctional institutionsmay reflect societies’ rejection of children whodo not conform to conventional social behaviour.Such stigmatisation may also be expressedin the abusive attitudes and behaviour of poorlytrained staff.Stigma also contributes to violence against childrenwith disabilities. Research has shown thatthey are frequently at higher risk of staff violencein institutions than other boys and girls. 2The violence suffered by children in institutionscan be exacerbated when they are housedwith adults or older children; this may leadto physical and sexual victimisation by otherolder children and adult inmates. The impactof institutionalisation goes beyond the immediateexposure of children to violence: longtermeffects can include severe developmentaldelays, disability, irreversible psychologicaldamage, and increased rates of suicide andcriminal activity. A study from the USA foundthat children who had been in detention inthe juvenile justice system were at great risk ofearly violent death. The main cause of deathfor young people who had been detained aschildren was homicide (90.1%). Being male,a member of a racial or ethnic minority, andfrom an urban area were the salient risk factorsfor violent death, as well as for being caught upin the juvenile justice system. 3Institutions housing children are often closedto public scrutiny. They lack a basic legalframework prohibiting all violence, and alsolack adequate Government regulation andoversight, effective complaints mechanisms,and inspection systems. Perpetrators are rarelyheld accountable, allowing high rates of violenceto continue unchecked, thereby perpetuatingtolerance of violence against children.TYPES OF CARE INSTITUTIONSWhile there is no universally accepted definitionof a children’s care institution, the featuresmost have in common are round-the-clock careof children who live apart from their families,and supervision by remunerated staff. Thesize, organisation and activities carried outwithin these institutions can vary widely. Inthe most closed and isolated institutions, thechild’s entire life – education, health servicesand work, leisure and sleep – takes place there,and the institution is very much cut off fromthe rest of the community. 4Some broad categories of institutional careinclude:Long-term residential or institutional care:The number of children living in individualinstitutions may range from a few dozen toseveral hundred. Some residential institutionsare specifically for children with disabilities.The terms ‘residential care’ and ‘institutionalcare’ are used interchangeably in this chapter.Emergency shelter care: Facilities that provideservices to meet children’s basic needs forsafety, food, shelter and education on a shorttermbasis.