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In France, child abuse is still a taboo subject. This is what emerges from this new 2022 edition of the survey already conducted in 2017 by the Harris Interactive institute for the association l’Enfant Bleu, which has been working for almost 30 years with victims of abuse.
Five years ago, L’Enfant Bleu lifted the veil on the taboo of child abuse in France with a resounding survey: 1 in 4 French people then revealed that they had been the victim of physical or psychological abuse in their childhood. This time, the association re-questions the French, both on their perception and their personal experience of child abuse.
Child abuse, a priority subject unanimously
According to this study, the subject of child abuse remains important in the eyes of the French. For 80% of respondents, it is even a phenomenon that they consider “frequent”. Despite these findings, the subject is still difficult to broach for more than three quarters of those questioned, who qualify it as “taboo”.
A little liberated speech on personal experience
When they have to talk about their personal situation, more than two out of 10 French people (24%) indicate that they have experienced events that can be assimilated to abuse, mainly within their own family, at least in part.
Among these people declaring themselves victims of serious ill-treatment, silence remains in order: only 25% indicate having denounced them at the time of the events. They are more, almost one in two, to estimate “probable or even certain that there is in their entourage at least one person who has been the victim of abuse during childhood“.
An increase in reports of abuse
In parallel with this survey, the association l’Enfant Bleu also recorded an unprecedented increase in calls from victims or to testify to child abuse: + 45% calls in 2022 compared to 2019 and + 51% calls in 2020 (beginning of the increase following the containment) compared to 2019. “In 30 years of existence, we had never received so many calls“, underlines Isabelle Debré, President of the Blue Child. “The sexual abuse accounted for 55% of our cases in 2021, i.e. more than 11 points compared to 2019 and 30 points compared to 2014!“.
Engage more with children
Finally, the survey reveals that the French express themselves very favorably (87%) on the fact that abuse is addressed at school. Moreover, 69% of parents say they have had discussions with their children on the subject.
The association therefore undertakes to continue its action for 2023 on three axes: continue awareness-raising actions at school, deploy more resources for the victims and continue its advocacy action with the public authorities.