Rosalee Gage Grey, Chief Executive Officer of the CPFSA - file photo
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Rosalee Gage Grey and Senior Superintendent Charmaine Shand, head of CISOCA
The Child Protection and Family Services Agency (CPFSA) has expressed surprise at reports of a 70 per cent increase in child sex abuse in Jamaica since the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Paediatric Association of Jamaica on Thursday said the cases of abuse involved mostly girls three to 12 years.
Rosalee Gage Grey, Chief Executive Officer of the CPFSA, said the information is contrary to data compiled by the agency.
Speaking Friday morning on Radio Jamaica's talk show programme, Hotline, Mrs Gage Grey said CPFSA records show a decline in reports of sexual abuse.
She said this is based on data provided by the National Children's Registry and its 14 parish offices.
"In terms of the reports we have been receiving since January, on average we would get for all case types - sexual abuse, physical abuse, neglect - we'd get about 1,000-1,200 cases per month. That held through in terms of January, February. In March, we saw about a 28 per cent decline, and in April, we are seeing a decline of about 40 per cent in terms of the number of cases that we're receiving, and all case types numbers are down... When we disaggregate and look at the sexual abuse cases, we're also seeing a decline - not as drastic as the other case types like neglect and physical abuse.
Mrs Gage Grey explained that the National Children's Registry arrives at its figures on sexual abuse cases based on reports that have been forward to its registry through calls, emails, walk-ins to parish offices or case referrals from the Centre for Investigation of Sexual Offences and Child Abuse (CISOCA).
Senior Superintendent Charmaine Shand, head of CISOCA, said Clarendon and St. Thomas have recorded the biggest increase in sexual offences up to April.
She said other parishes have seen a decline in cases. For instance, St. Ann, which had seen 28 cases from January to April 2019, now has 26 cases up to April this year.
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