Police Investigate Asir Sisters’ Complaint About Abuse in Family

Police Investigate Asir Sisters’ Complaint About Abuse in Family
Hayat Al-Ghamdi, Arab News

ABHA, 4 December 2007 — Authorities in Asir region are investigating the case of two sisters, aged 13 and 11, who have allegedly been sexually abused by their father and 15-year-old brother.

The girls are being kept at the Civil Hospital in Khamis Mushayt while authorities investigate their case.

“The elder girl was brought to the emergency room at the hospital last Wednesday by her father. She had pain in the right side of her stomach,” said a hospital source, adding that the father insisted that his daughter be placed in the men’s section to allow him to accompany her.

However, hospital staff refused the request and the girl was placed in the women’s section. “The father then brought along his younger daughter to accompany the older girl,” said the source.

“Both girls were in bad shape. Their health was poor and they looked bad. They didn’t want to talk at first. The younger sister was more willing to talk about the abuse than the older one,” said the source, adding that she cried and told staff not to tell her father or sister.

The source added that the younger sister claimed that her father, his girlfriend and elder brother had been abusing them. However, the older girl, who was reluctant to talk, said it was only her brother who was abusing them. Both girls also said that their father had introduced them to porn movies.

The girls live with their father and three siblings. The children’s mother, who lives and works in Jeddah as a cleaner, is divorced and sends SR1,000 for the children each month. She also regularly telephones them, but is oblivious of the abuse.

The hospital source criticized the authorities for not adequately investigating the case. The source said this was also true of human rights bodies, which have shown to be reluctant to take action in previous cases.

This reporter was asked by hospital staff to contact police to urge them to investigate the case. Officers were initially reluctant but then later came and took statements from the girls.

The source added that they are unable to examine the girls without the prior permission of a judge or legal guardian, which in this case is the father.

Maha Al-Manif, executive manager of the Secure Family Program at the National Guard Hospital in Riyadh, said that it was difficult to get approval from a judge to examine a victim because the Kingdom’s judiciary is unorganized.

When asked if a 15-year-old could abuse a girl, Al-Manif said, “At this age the boy is considered to be an adult and is able to perform sex.”