ABSTRACT
Children in India come into contact with the criminal justice system as children in need of care and protection, as victims and witnesses of crime, or as children in conflict with law – circumstances which often overlap considerably. This chapter focuses on children who are victims and witnesses of sexual abuse, are in institutional care, and are in need of care and protection. Where such children come into contact with the justice system, they are very often unaware of their rights. While the introduction of the child-friendly provisions of the POCSO Act 2012 goes some way towards mitigating the risk that children will endure secondary victimisation through their contact with the court, legal processes themselves are insufficient to address a child’s holistic well-being and rehabilitation. To showcase work that seeks to fill this gap, this chapter draws on empirical work conducted in India, which provides intellectually disabled children who have been sexually abused with legal, therapeutic, and educational supports to address trauma and prevent secondary victimisation, and to introduce positive changes that support children in moving towards independent living and social integration. Elucidating a child rights-based approach to supporting abused children, the chapter contains recommendations suitable for adoption and implementation in other jurisdictions.
