Indian, Sikh and Pakistani communities join forces in urging Hong Kong government to step up measures against sex abuse of ethnic minority children
- Call follows recent arrest of concern group leader over child porn and assault on minors
- Fears about tarnishing family name in small local communities may deter some victims from speaking up
Indian, Sikh and Pakistani communities in Hong Kong have joined forces to call on the government to step up educational and cultural initiatives to protect ethnic minority children from sexual harassment and abuse.
Community leaders called for action on Thursday after the arrest of a man in charge of an ethnic minority concern group. He was charged with molesting two minors and possessing child pornography.
Speaking at a press conference, representatives from the Pakistan Association of Hong Kong, Khalsa Diwan (Sikh Temple) Hong Kong, and the Racial Integration Education and Welfare Association, said measures were needed to tackle structural and cultural issues that contributed to the lack of awareness of sexual harassment issues.
“Many ethnic minority children trust strangers quite easily and are very enthusiastic towards them,” said Jimmy Singh Baljinder, a fifth-generation Indian and Sikh resident in the city, as well as co-founder of the Racial Integration Education and Welfare Association, an NGO.
“Often they don’t know what is right or wrong when it comes to sexual harassment, and won’t necessarily tell their parents if they are abused.
“Sometimes ethnic minority children won’t even tell their parents about a bike accident, let alone sexual harassment, because they fear parents will blame them for what happened, or it might tarnish the family name in the community,” he added.