Children’s rights organizations raise the alarm about many reports of sexual abuse and violations at the state’s youth homes. Almost all reported incidents concern male employees who exposed girls to sexual contact. The children’s rights organizations World Childhood Foundation (Childhood) and the Children’s Rights Agency have mapped reports about and the occurrence of sexual abuse and violence at the state’s youth homes run by the State Institutions Board (Sis), which receive children and young people up to the age of 21 who are judged to have extensive psychosocial problems or who are convicted of serious crimes. Girls are mainly exposed The report shows extensive and constantly recurring reports and notifications about molestation and sexual violations, especially about male employees who expose girls to sexual touch. – There is a small number of young people who are placed each year, around 1,000, which roughly corresponds to an average school. There, on average, there are five reports of sexual violations or abuse per month, with one conviction against one of the staff per year. An average school would not have been allowed to continue operating in that way, year after year, says Joel Borgström at Childhood. Childhood and the Children’s Rights Agency base their report on a study by the researcher Maria Andersson Vogel, who has nailed official documents and judgments from the time period January 2019–May 2022. The report counts 209 reported incidents, notifications or complaints at 20 out of 21 youth homes during the period, and also states that five former employees have been convicted of rape of young people at Sis home during 2017–2022. See an interview with Joel Borgström in the clip above.
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New report: Widespread abuse of children in youth homes
