National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) says it has received close to 10,000 complaints regarding child abuse over the course of 2023.
The NCPA chairman, Udayakumara Amarasinghe said as many as 9,434 complaints were received between 01 January and 31 December last year, as opposed to the 7,466 complaints received in 2022.
Among these are, 2,242 complaints of cruelty, 472 on sexual abuse, 404 on severe sexual abuse, 51 on rape of female children, and 6 on using children for obscene posts, he said.
In addition, complaints were also received with regard to child exploitation, trafficking, domestic abuse, neglect, and kidnapping.
Mr. Amarasinghe said these complaints have been forwarded to respective authorities for onward legal action.
Meanwhile, discussions are in progress to amend certain existing laws to crack down on child abuse, NCPA chairman emphasized.
