Domestic Violence Cases Analysis

Part A: 

Question 1. 

According to The Domestic Violence Act of 2010 of the Republic of Uganda, any act or omission of a perpetrator that injures, harms or endangers the safety, health, limb, life, or wellbeing, whether physical or mental, of the victim or is intended to do so and includes causing sexual abuse, physical abuse, verbal, emotional, and psychological abuse, and economic abuse is a domestic violence and is considered a crime in Uganda. A person who engages in domestic violence commits an offense and is liable on imprisonment for not more than two years or a fine not exceeding forty-eight currency points (Domestic Violence Act, 2010). 

Based on this Act, Sules husband is committing a domestic violence offense by beating and raping Sules. The act of beating Sules harms her health, wellbeing, and life. It is physical abuse that is prohibited in the Ugandan constitution. Besides, raping Sules is tantamount to sexual abuse which has both emotional and psychological implications to her. The fact that Sules' husband is also HIV positive and forces her to have sex means that he engages in an act that endangers the health, safety, and wellbeing of Sules. Sules explains that even when her husband was HIV positive he refused to use a condom and forced her to have sex. It means that the husband often had sex with Sules without the latter’s consent. A study that was done by Birdthistle et al. (2013) on the relationship between non-consensual sex and HIV infection on women in rural Uganda, it was found that many women in marriages who were confirmed HIV positive reported cases on non-consensual sex with their partners. The case presented here about Sules implies that if the husband was willing to use a condom and did not force Sules to have sex with him even when he knew he was HIV positive, she could not get infected. It is therefore clear that Sules husband committed a domestic violence offense which is a crime liable for punishment in Uganda. 

Question 2. 

Trying to ascertain whether or not the sex was consensual in case of non-consensual sex, has always been a problem for experts in Uganda. One of the main challenges is how different people interpret the meaning of consensual sex. According to Birdthistle et al. (2013), participants of the study on consensual sex may understand it differently, and if the period of the study is not enough for the researchers to explain what it should mean, then it can lead to misinterpretations that could alter the results of the study. For instance, experts in Uganda may be unable to know whether sex was consensual or not because women may have different conditions under which they refer as having sex against their will. Therefore, unless there are specified standards under which sex can be termed nonconsensual, then it will remain difficult to determine. 

Also, the fact that some women may choose to report sexual abuse as a non-consensual to avoid being blamed for some behavior that a social viewed inappropriate, makes it even more difficult for the experts to determine the authenticity of the case (Birdthistle et al. (2013). For instance, a teenager who has had sex with their male counterpart and becomes pregnant may report the case as non-consensual sex, even when it was mutual consent, for fear of how the society will judge her. Besides, studies have shown that there is a correlation between alcohol use and sexual abuse (Zablotska et al. 2009). Therefore, if the person reporting having had sex without their consent was under the influence of alcohol, it is challenging to determine whether it was in their consent or not. Such phenomena present challenges to the experts seeking to establish whether sex was non-consensual. 

PART B: 

Question 1. 

In most cases, children reach to family and domestic violence in different ways. It requires one to ask various questions about the violence to understand the situation of the child. In the case of Susan, there are some few questions I would like her to answer so that I can understand her situation. First, did the molestation happen once or more than once? What is the name of the brother who molested her? What happened next after he molested her? Did she report to anybody? Such questions will help me investigate Susan's case thoroughly. 

Question 2. 

The current concerns I might have when investigating the case of Susan's molestation are the possible safety threats and risk factors for Susan. For example, I would like to know whether Susan's brother still poses a threat to Susan and whether it is him who is making her run away from home now and then. I will be seeking to determine the extent of the risk whether it is high to help me determine if the child needs immediate protection from that family member through family or child welfare intervention. Secondly, I will be seeking to gather information from Susan that will be helpful for the agency and coordinating agencies to make decisions regarding the allegations against Susan’s brother. The investigation will help me determine how serious is the offense and whether the offender has consistently violated the rules. For example, if Susan will indicate that his brother has abused her sexually many times, then the offender will be arrested and charged for the offense. If Susan suggests that his brother is still a threat to her life and he is the cause of her behavior of missing from home often, then there will be a need for immediate action against the brother and protective measures put in place for Susan. 

Question 3. 

Although Susan has exhibited behaviors that imply she doesn't want to go back home, I would recommend an intervention that places her in the home and making the perpetrator leave. This is because separating Susan with her caregivers and other members of the family may bring her several problems including separation anxiety, increased feelings of powerlessness, internalizing blame for the abuse, and difficulties related to adjusting to alternative placements. Besides, I will consider setting up services that address the effects of abuse on her. After investigating the results of the abuse on Susan through interviewing, I will notice the impact of the abuse and whether she reports the effects such as the anger, low self-esteem, sexualized behavior, and interpersonal relationship problems. This will necessitate individual therapy to help her recover from the situation. 

Cognitive Behavior Therapy (CBT) is one of the most recommended therapies for addressing the effects of sexual abuse on children. Specifically, Combined Parent-Child Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CPC-CBT) can be the most appropriate intervention for Susan. This intervention has four stages: the first stage involves engagement and psychoeducation, the second one entails effective coping skill-building for the parents, the third one developing a family safety plan that will ensure such abuse does not recur (Faller, 2017), and the last one is abuse clarification where parents and children are taught about abuses that are at high risk and relatively lower risks. 

References 

Birdthistle, I., Mayanja, B. N., Maher, D., Floyd, S., Seeley, J., & Weiss, H. A. (2013). Non consensual sex and association with incident HIV infection among women: A cohort study in rural Uganda, 1990-2008. AIDS and Behavior, 17 (7), 2430-8. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/1428699147/DE9847A191624BACPQ/1?accountid 45844 

Domestic Violence Act 2010 of the Republic of Uganda. Retrieved from https://ulii.org/system/files/legislation/act/2010/2010/domestic_violence_act_2010_pdf_ 0398.pdf 

Faller, K. C. (2017). Interventions for physically and Sexually abused children. Encyclopedia of Social Work. pp. 3-22. Retrieved from http://oxfordre.com/socialwork/view/10.1093/acrefore/9780199975839.001.0001/acrefo e-9780199975839-e-1224 

Zablotska, I. B., Gray, R. H., Koenig, M. A., Serwadda, D., Nalugoda, F., Kigozi, G., . . . Wawer, M. (2009). Alcohol use, intimate partner violence, sexual coercion and HIV among women aged 15-24 in Rakai, Uganda. AIDS and Behavior, 13 (2), 225-33. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/211180309/95D43CC92D124E60PQ/1?accountid= 5844