Violência sexual na infância : perspectiva sob a compreensão materna

Abstract

Violence represents the crystallization of real voids produced due to the negligence of public policies, social and cultural inequality, poverty, unemployment, among other reasons. This phenomenon reaches everyone, equally, including the child, who may suffer several kinds of violence, such as sexual abuse. Facing this reality, one highlights that not only the victim, but also the family structure as a whole is affected by the consequence of such phenomenon. One aimed to understand the perception of mothers about sexual abuse suffered by their daughters. The institution where the study was conducted was a non-governmental organization in the city of Fortaleza – Ce – Brazil. A qualitative research was conducted, having as subjects 10 mothers of children who were victims of sexual abuse. The data were collected from February through March, 2007, obtained through semi-structured interview and recorded, for analysis and organization one used the collective subject’s discourse technique. One noticed that the CSD of the interviewees brings several feelings of mothers who had their daughters sexually abused, the first ones had feelings of powerlessness, guilt and suffering, living with an unrecoverable pain. One highlighted the fact that the violence is extremely functional, as it reaches its goal, destroys, marks and kills. Despair was present in some depositions, relating suicidal and homicidal ideas, especially on the part of the interviewee. One still observed that, after discovering the sexual abuse suffered by the child, the family’s destruction becomes clear. The phenomenon brings disastrous consequences, not saving even the elements creators of the family, the family destruction becomes stronger due to changes in the victim’s behavior, which varies between rebelliousness, low school grades, up till self-mutilation. One noticed that sexual abuse, not always is known by all the family members and the taboo around this illicit subject becomes a “wall of silence” from all the members, against the external world. It was possible to notice, in the speeches, the will to see the victims recover from the pain caused by the violence, for doing so, highlighting that the type of sexual abuse, relationship with the abuser, duration of abuse and resistance of the victim, are elements that interfere in the consequences and recovering. One observed, however, the existence of anxiety in removing the consequences left by the sexual abuse in the daughter’s life, the hope to soften, even “erase” all the pain, as well as changes in the behavior, showed by the daughter. After all, one highlights that due to the different feelings, these facts represent a reason to think about the urgency in creating a system of social support. One emphasizes the importance of professionals prepared to attend, directly and indirectly, the victims of child sexual abuse as well as the victim’s relatives.