The question
What are the preventive steps that the educator should take to protect their children from incidents of sexual assault?
Our answer
May Allah preserve the children. This danger rests on two matters. First: keeping the child away from dangerous surroundings. Second: building his awareness so the path to these dangers is cut — that is, building his own self-protection. This requires that you establish in their minds the refusal to accept anything from a stranger, or even from a relative they don't trust. They should not go out without permission, and they should protect themselves from dangers. They should not ride in a car nor go far from the house without their father or mother or someone trusted. So we warn them of the means that might lead to their being kidnapped or harmed. May Allah help — the mere mention of this contracts the heart. As a Muslim Ummah, the surroundings ought to be clean and safe. But beware of placing the child in surroundings where it is easy for the wicked to reach him. And I caution strongly against an unsound family environment, as this matter may come from a corrupt element within the family. So beware of being alone and of suspicious mixing.
May Allah preserve the children of the Muslims.
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