Shrouds of silence : a case study of sexual abuse in schools in the Limpopo Province in South Africa
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Authors
Pillay, Venitha
Issue Date
2014
Type
Article
Language
en
Keywords
Alternative Title
Abstract
This study seeks to understand the reasons that allow a parent, a principal and a teacher to maintain silence when young girls under their care are sexually abused. Put another way, it attempts to explain what it is about sexual abuse that makes these parties relinquish their role as protectors of innocent children. This paper, based on a larger study of sexual abuse in schools in the Limpopo Province, investigates the possibility that teacher/learner sexual abuse has, over the years, become imbued in a cultural silence linked to African cultural practices. It is argued here that the silence on sexual abuse might be rooted in traditional, patriarchal views on gender and social justice. The research findings indicate that there might well be a growing resistance to what is regarded by some communities as the imposition of liberal, urban, value systems on traditional, rural African people.
Description
Citation
Pillay, Venitha (2014) Shrouds of silence : a case study of sexual abuse in schools in the Limpopo Province in South Africa Perspectives in Education Volume 32, Issue 3, Sep 2014, p. 22 - 35
Publisher
University of the Free State
License
© 2014 University of the Free State
Journal
Volume
Issue
PubMed ID
DOI
ISSN
0258-2236