PHYSICAL abuse in special needs schools for children with learning, physical, visual, hearing or speech disabilities was so severe that injuries required medical intervention, the Commission to Inquire into Child Abuse found.Forms of physical abuse reported included hitting, punching, kicking, beating, bodily assault with implements and immersion in water.
The commission interviewed 59 witnesses and heard reports of abuse from 58 of them, 39 male and 19 female, in relation to their time in 14 different special needs schools managed by religious congregations.
Victims told the commission that while attending special needs services they were physically abused and assaulted by various means, including being hit with leather straps, canes, spade and broom handles, various types of sticks and brushes, kitchen implements, wooden coat hangers and rulers.
They reported having their heads held under water, being put into cold baths, having their hair cut and pulled, being forcibly fed, and being locked in outhouses, sheds and isolated rooms.
Witnesses with sensory impairments described the particular fear and trauma associated with being physically abused when they could not see or hear abusers approaching them.
Other forms of physical abuse and assault reported by witnesses included being punched and kicked, pinched, slapped across the face and ears, held by the throat, lifted by the hair and ears, and having their left hand or both hands tied behind their back to prevent use.
Sexual abuse reported by 36 witnesses included voyeurism, inappropriate fondling, mutual masturbation, oral/genital contact, penetration with objects, kissing, vaginal and anal rape. Eleven interviewees, nine of whom were male, reported being raped.
The victims who provided information about their adult life circumstances described an ongoing sense of isolation and inability to trust others.
Others reported that separation from their families in childhood has contributed to their sense of feeling isolated and different from others.
For some, the relationships with their brothers and sisters have never been properly restored, depriving them of practical and emotional support networks in their adult lives, the commission found.
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