year-old Cielo, had never imagined that his Filipino friend and neighbor Armando would wreck the innocent life of his daughter. For over a month Armando sexually abused Cielo in his apartment in Jeddah's Ruwais district. ed sexual battery and even death threats from the family friend, going to great lengths to keep his behavior secret. Abusing the family's trust in him as a neighbor and compatriot, who would presumably protect them, the Filipino man put all moral considerations aside to satisfy his whims, grooming the little girl with special attention, cartoon movies, gifts, and time alone before abusing her in his short walk home. Whenever Cielo stepped into Armando's apartment, the cartoon movies were soon replaced with porno movies, exposing the little girl to adult sexuality. Child psychiatrists believe that children are psychologically unable to handle sexual stimulation. Even a two- or three-year-old, who cannot know the sexual activity is wrong, will develop problems resulting from the inability to cope with over-stimulation. For over a month, Cielo seemed withdrawn, depressed, and clingy for no obvious reason. She was living with fear of adults, and even older children. Armando took a chance of the little child almost everyday for a month while her parents were away for work to bring food for the little kid. They didn't know they were feeding her for Armando. Her father, Lito, who has worked in the Kingdom for over 25 years, thought he left his family in safe hands with his new neighbor, when he was going to work outside Jeddah. He would come back on weekends to join his family, not knowing his little Cielo had been just sexually assaulted by the neighbor who had just said ‘hi' to him. Her mother had no time to sit with her all day as she had to work too for long hours. “I had to leave her home alone to go to work,” the heart-broken mom said. “I never thought that our neighbor's apartment would turn into a den to abuse my Cielo,” she said with tears rolling down her cheeks. But abusers would fail to always cover their deviltries. A neighbor noticed Armando behaving strangely as he was just coming out of his neighbor's apartment. “What's wrong with you?” the neighbor asked. “I was feeding the kid,” replied Armando. Yeah, right! With lingering distrust of Armando, the neighbor told the mother of what he saw. The mother talked to her child about it, encouraging her to speak up, constantly assuring her that telling her mom was the right thing to do and she would be safe. It was the abuser the mom blamed not the child, making Cielo feel free to talk about what had happened to her. Cielo broke down and told her mom everything. “What to do next?” was the mom's immediate question. She ran, not take revenge herself, but to the police to report the abuse. “I stopped the first police car I saw and told them what happened,” she said. They told me to go to the Sharfia Police Department to file a complaint. And she did. “He always called her at her cell phone, asking her to delete his number right after the call, threatening to kill us if she wouldn't,” the mother said. Recovering from his shock, the father said, “I can't believe my homeboy and neighbor would this to us.” As the case is taking its official channels with Armando thrown in Briman prison in Jeddah now, Lito firmly insisted on following the case up until the court delivers its verdict. “Armando must be prosecuted,” he was resolved. Cielo is living in fear of “death if he is released,” he said. While the outside scars Cielo suffered may heal, the emotional trauma can be deep and long-lasting, affecting not just her but society at large. When facing trial, Armando is doomed by a forensic report confirming the assault. Psychologists stress that it's important to understand that no matter what the adult says in defense of his or her actions, the child did not invite the sexual activity and the adult's behavior is wrong. Sexual abuse is never the child's fault. If parents need to foster in their children a sense of ownership regarding their bodies, they will likely have an instinct about what is fine for their bodies and what is not, child psychiatrists say. Parents build on their children's natural sense of ownerships of their bodies by letting them pick out their own clothes or wash themselves in their own way. Also, avoid pushing them to kiss or hug other adults when they clearly do not want to. When parents treat their children's bodies with respect, children tend to demand that others treat their bodies in a similar manner. Children who are consistently hit, grabbed, or physically punished at home may feel that adults are entitled to misuse their bodies simply because they are bigger. This is only one of the reported sexual abuse cases, but the number of the unreported instances is believed to be surprising. __
