In India, child sexual abuse (CSA) happens at such a high rate that it
may be safe to call it an epidemic. According to the widely cited 2007 study by
Ministry of Women and Child Development, 53% of children in India experience
one or more forms of sexual abuse before they turn 18 years old.
To this end, HEAL emerged as a project which envisions a community that
upholds, understands and values the rights of its children by protecting them
from sexual abuse.
Our mission is to prevent sexual abuse of children through the tool of
education. We aim to enable all involved to understand, recognize, learn
preventive methods and respond sensitively to child sexual abuse.
Our work revolves around conducting child safety workshops with
Teachers, followed by Parents. Post this, we conduct personal body safety
workshop with children from Grade 1 to Grade 10, where we teach them about body
safety, right names of private body parts, personal space, physical boundaries
and safe and unsafe touch.