Child sexual abuse, mental health, and legislation in India and Thailand: A cross-country comparison

Abstract

Introduction: Child sexual abuse (CSA) is a serious public health issue in India and Thailand. To identify potential barriers for addressing CSA in these countries, it is necessary to explore and compare research, laws, and policies in these two countries.

Material and methods: The Scopus and PubMed databases were searched for published literature on "Child Sexual Abuse" AND "India" OR "Thailand" concerning research focus, prevalence, factors, and policies or interventions on CSA. Main legislations related to CSA were compared using a predefined outline. Additionally, authors compared and analysed current legislation in relation to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC).

Results: Published literature (n = 64) included original articles (n = 26), reviews (n = 36), editorials or letters to the editor (n = 2). No collaboration on CSA between the two countries was found. Several differences in the main legislation (e.g., punishment, services) of India and Thailand were observed, both between countries and in relation to the UNCRC.

Conclusion: Our findings suggest that CSA is mostly under-researched in both countries in terms of services, policy and legislation. There is a need for cross-country, multidisciplinary, and collaborative research on CSA in both India and Thailand.

Keywords: Child protection act (CPA); Child sexual abuse; Children; Protection of children from sexual offence (POCSO) act.