'Yusri and His Secret': Protecting our boys from sexual abuse

In the story, Yusri is groomed and then molested by his "friend", who threatens to tell the young boy's friends that he "likes to be touched" if he reports the abuse to anyone. Photos: WCC

The Women's Centre for Change, Penang has launched Yusri and His Secret, a story about a 11-year-old boy who was molested by an older friend he trusted and looked up to, to raise awareness about child sexual abuse on boys, a topic that is not often spoken about openly.

The story, available online in English today with upcoming versions in Bahasa Malaysia, Chinese and Tamil, shares how Yusri is groomed and then molested by his "friend", who threatens to tell the young boy's friends that he "likes to be touched" if he reports the abuse to anyone. Traumatised and full of self-doubt and self-blame, Yusri pulls away from his friends and becomes reclusive. He finally shares his secret with his close friends who notice a change in him. They urge him to tell his mother, who reassures Yusri that what happened was not his fault at all. She then tells him that they have to make a police report to stop others from being abused.