Sexual assaults on children rising in the Bay

Sexual assaults on children rising in the Bay

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/bay-of-plenty-times/news/article.cfm?c_id=1503343&objectid=11702228

Almost 100 children under the age of 12 report being sexually assaulted in the Bay of Plenty every year – and experts say this is only a fraction of the problem.

New figures revealed to The Bay of Plenty Times showed in the year to June there had been 57 reported cases of children being sexually assaulted. Ninety six children under the age of 12 were reported as being sexually assaulted in 2015.

One Bay organisation is doing its part to help those who have been affected deal with the long-lasting effects.

Bay of Plenty Sexual Assault Services chief executive Kylie McKee said more than 50 per cent of sexual assault victims would develop some form of mental illness later in life.

“The effects are devastating and traumatising for a person with the complexity and ugliness of the assaults increasing dramatically.”