1 in 10 girls sexually abused: UN report

About 120 million girls around the world – slightly more than one in 10 – have been raped or sexually assaulted by the age of 20, a UN report says. The children’s agency Unicef also says 95,000 children and teenagers – most of them in Latin America and the Caribbean – were murdered in 2012 alone. It notes that children around the globe are routinely exposed to violence, including bullying. The document draws on data from 190 countries. The violence ‘cuts across boundaries of age, geography, religion, ethnicity and income brackets,’ Unicef executive director Anthony Lake said on Thursday. The report says 120m girls - one in 10 - are raped or sexually attacked by age of 20 and six out of 10 children aged between two and 14 are physically punished by carers. ‘It occurs in places where children should be safe, their homes, schools and communities,’ the Unicef says adding ‘Increasingly, it happens over the internet, and it’s perpetrated by family members and teachers, neighbours and strangers and other children.’