Case Study 9: Sala*, her abusive step-father and disbelieving mother14 Sala is 12 years old, with four younger siblings and used to live with her parents in the village. Everything was OK until her step-father began to molest her. Eventually she ran away from home. Sala’s mother came to pick her up and take her home again. When they got there she beat Sala with the cord of an electric kettle because of the account of the sexual abuse she gave. Her mother didn’t believe her and continues to not believe her, despite the matter now being referred to the police. *Names changed to protect the identities of those involved. Case Study 10: Masina*, her abusive step-father and provoking clothes15 Masina was 11 when the sexual molestation started at the hands of her late step-father. She was the third step daughter that he had inherited from his marriage to Masina’s mother. After three years of abuse she decided to tell her mother and according to Masina this signals the end of their relationship for the years to follow. Masina’s mother did not believe her and resented her because of the shame that her story has on the family. “I was called a liar because no actual sexual intercourse happened and… my already modest clothes were inspected every day [by mother] to ensure that I was not provoking the abuse.” Masina is now married with children and still struggling to deal with the emotional effects of the abuse and her children and husband are now directly affected by the impacts of her experience. *Names changed to protect the identities of those involved. Some caregivers often do not want to believe that horrific acts of sexual abuse can happen to their child and instead find it easier to believe that the child is making up lies, rather than telling the truth as this allows them not to confront the truth. Another disturbing issue that comes across from these young women’s stories is the failure of their mothers to take an active interest in the welfare and protection of their children. In saying that, it is not only mothers that bear the responsibility of safeguarding the best interest of children, but fathers and their families also have a role to play. The right of all children to be heard and taken seriously constitutes one of the fundamental values of the CRC. In the Fa’asamoa, ‘O fanau o fa’amanuiaga mai le Atua’ (Children are blessings from God) and 14 15 Evidence provided to the Inquiry by a victim. Anonymous written submission.