Zwinkyness

This is a serious post, so there is no need for me to find a funky, original title to go with it. No, honestly, every time I hear the news and read the newspapers, I come across at least one murder on a child. And for some reason, most of these events happen to take place in Germany. This is not only extremely weird, but also disturbing and horrible.

This article published by The New York Times indicates that recently a lot of cases of child-neglect and abuse have been reported in Germany. Somewhere around the 14th of December, three cases of murdered children have been broadcasted and all took place in Germany. One mother confessed to killing her five sons, in another home the bodies of three dead babies were found and somewhere else a mother and her dead child were discovered. The tales are gruesome, the facts horrible, the realisation that this could happen in any country (not just Germany) is terrifying.

In Germany discussions have been raised about how the government cares about younger children and what services could be installed to provide more protection for youngsters.  However, just a few days ago I heard on the news (I have little time therefore failed to find articles regarding this) that another body of a little baby was found near a baby-depot (where young mothers who cannot take care for their child, can leave the baby behind to go to foster care) frozen to death and just a few hours later, another child was found in the depot box, but it had already died too. These two events took place in Germany too.

I cannot help but think that recently child murders (and not just in Germany) and child abuse have risen. Proof says reported child abuse in Germany on a yearly base has risen from 1.900 cases in 1995 to 3.000 cases in 2007. On the one hand, this probably has to do with our community easier reporting child abuse, but on the other hand it might have to do with a rise of said crime.

I’m not one who easily watches the News, but this even grabbed my attention. It makes me feel sick and horrible: it gives me a certain feeling of insecurity that our society, developed as it is, fails to catch child molesters and child murderers before they commit their awful crimes. This world is not always a safe place for children to grow up in and I find that terrible. All children should be able to be safe or at least to feel safe, no matter what.  

I do not believe in any God, so I do not pray. However I am keeping those children in my thoughts. Murdering a child or abusing it is about the cruelest thing anyone can do: there is nothing that will ever talk that right. I would like to ask you all to keep those little children, the children who could have been you and me several years ago, those little angels filled with innocence, in your thoughts or in your prayers for now, and perhaps we might reach whatever is out there with our thoughts. Thank you.