victims, he took advantage of his ability to sleep in the same house as the victims”. In sentencing Justice Tuala-Warren also highlighted the psychological impact that the abuse would have on the children. *Names changed to protect the identities of those involved. Myth 6: Sexual abuse always leaves evidence Reality: A lack of physical evidence of sexual assault is often cited as support that an alleged perpetrator must be innocent. However, research shows that it is rare, even in cases where abuse has otherwise been proved.17 Some acts, like oral sex and fondling, leave no physical trace. Even injuries from penetration heal very quickly. Myth 7: Only girls are sexually abused Reality: It is a dangerous myth that only girls are abused. Dangerous because it means that boys receive less attention and are therefore more vulnerable and also because our support services are then not set up to deal with such cases. 7.1.8 Prevalence of sexual violence and incest Reliable and comprehensive data on how many children this is happening to is hard to come by. In the last Government report to the CEDAW Committee18, the Government reported 198 sexual crimes between the year 2012-2015 with 53% (105) being children aged 13-16. However, the Planning and Policy Division of MoP has also reported 112 cases of rape or sexual assault of a girl under the age of 16 in the year 2013-2014 alone.19 As noted earlier barely a day passes without a report of a similar story in the national media. And if this were not enough to convince that the problem is widespread, the Inquiry heard evidence from service providers and the Judiciary who see the scale first hand. For instance, Dr. Malama Tafunai’s20 testimony to the Inquiry was heartfelt, despairing and tinged with great sadness. Fighting back the tears, Dr. Malama told the Inquiry of the numerous young women and children she had seen who she suspected had been raped, including one of her more sinister cases: 17 See for example, Luci Pfeiffer, Edila Pizzato Salvagni. (2005). “Current view of sexual abuse in childhood and adolescence.” Jornal de Pediatria 81(5). pp.197-2014. Retrieved at http://www.scielo.br/pdf/%0D/jped/v81n5s0/en_v81n5Sa10.pdf. 18 Government of Samoa. (2017). Sixth Periodic State Report to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women. CEDAW/C/WSM/6. Document 90 Inquiry anthology. 19 Written submission to the Inquiry by Tuiloma Sina Retzlaff. Document 61 Inquiry anthology. 20 Dr. Malama Tafunai is currently a senior clinical lecturer with the School of Medicine at National University of Samoa and has years of experience as a primary health care physician and general practitioner in Samoa and New Zealand.