Division of Youth Services Director Vivian Sablan, left, and Mariah Barcinas, DYS child protective services intervention specialist, were the guest speakers of the Rotary Club of Saipan on Tuesday.
DIVISION of Youth Services Director Vivian Sablan and Mariah Barcinas, DYS child protective services intervention specialist, talked about child abuse cases in the CNMI during the Rotary Club Saipan meeting at the Crowne Plaza Resort on Tuesday.
Data that Barcinas presented showed that on Saipan in 2023, the number of child abuse cases totaled 438, an increase from the 285 cases in 2021 and 345 cases in 2022.
On Saipan, the number of physical abuse cases was 64 in 2021, 79 in 2022 and 115 in 2023. The number of sexual abuse cases was 70 in 2021, 76 in 2022 and 103 in 2023. Emotional abuse cases rose from 152 in 2021 to 171 in 2022 and 245 in 2023 while general neglect cases rose from 158 in 2021 to 173 in 2022 and 202 in 2023.
In 2023 on Saipan, the number of individual primary and secondary child victims of abuse was 1,152. In 2021 the number was 863; in 2022 it was 956.
These are the same statistics that DYS shared with the media earlier this month.
Sablan said a primary child abuse victim is the one who received the abuse while a secondary victim was present while someone else in their home was being abused.
According to Barcinas, “One of the things we’ve noticed since the Covid-19 pandemic was the increase in drug abuse. Drug use was really high … and we were thinking that it’s because we had stimulus. We had all this free money coming in and they could afford [drugs].”
Sablan said outreach with their key community partners also helps uncover abuse cases in the CNMI.
“I think people [now] know where to go, how to report a case,” Sablan said. “The schools, our really big partner, are really good. We make it a point to conduct child abuse presentations every year during their [professional development training]. We try to stick our nose everywhere, including at the police academy — everywhere we can so we can spread awareness.”
Sablan said there are “many contributing factors” to the increase in child abuse cases. One of them could be economic.
“A lot of our families are on austerity. There’s a lot of pressure now in the home, so I’m pretty sure that those are contributing,” she said.
Barcinas encouraged concerned residents to seek the assistance of DYS, which serves victims of child abuse and neglect as well as their family members, juveniles detained at the Department of Corrections, juveniles placed on court probation, homeless individuals and families, youth at risk and parents at risk.
DYS also investigates child abuse and neglect cases, Barcinas added.
For more information, call (670) 285-2780/1 or (670) 237-1005/1014.
On Tinian, call (670) 287-3268 or (670) 433-2950.
On Rota, call (670) 287-2553 or (670) 532-9393.
For those who wish to remain anonymous, call the NMI Crime Stoppers at (670) 234-7272.
