Published: Just now
Almost 9,000 reports of child welfare crimes have been received by the police during the roughly one year that the law has been in place. During the same period, close to 1,000 prosecutions have been brought where child welfare violations have been one of the charges, reports Sweden’s Radio Ekot.
The law, which among other things means that it is a crime to let children witness violence within the family, came into force on 1 July last year. If, for example, one parent hits the other and the child sees it, this means that the parent is guilty of both assault and breach of child protection.
– What we know about exposure to violence is that it is just as harmful for the child to experience violence as to be exposed to violence, says Charlotte Qvandt, child investigator at the police, to SR.
She says that the police are often forced to prioritize questions about suspected child welfare violations in interrogation situations.
– We don’t talk to children more than the child can handle, and there you find out what is most important that we talk to the child about, she says.