Child abuse in this nation has reached a crisis level. Child welfare centers across the nation dealt with a record 34,451 cases of child abuse in fiscal 2005, a thousand more than in the previous year and a 31.3-fold increase since fiscal 1990.
The police uncovered a record 120 cases of child abuse in the first half of this year, an increase of 14.3 percent over the same period last year. The police investigated 131 people on suspicion of child abuse, up 12.9 percent from last year. Victims numbered 128, up 18.5 percent from the previous year. Both figures are the highest since 2000. Twenty-eight of the victims died, six more than the year before. The situation underscores the need for the central and local governments and communities to step up cooperation aimed at preventing child abuse.
In 2004, improvements were made in the nationwide effort to fight child abuse. That year the child abuse prevention law was revised to require that people notify authorities if they came across children thought to have been abused even if there was no concrete evidence. Previously the law stated only that people must notify authorities if they had discovered firm evidence of abuse against a child. The National Police Agency says this revision may have heightened people's consciousness about child abuse, allowing the police to make more arrests. A 2005 revision of the children's welfare law had municipal governments open sections to accept "tipoffs" on potential cases of child abuse. These sections supplement existing child welfare centers.