Although statistics indicate a decline in criminal abuse cases, the reliability of the data is questioned, and estimates of unreported abuse vary wildly. Child abuse is defined very broadly, and statutory law offers wide and detailed protection for children. The fundamental law, civil code, and courts, however, grant parents broad child-rearing rights, although this is changing. Reporting suspected abuse is not mandatory, and there is little support for such a law. No data are available on causal factors, and theoretical perspectives are divided between psychodynamic and historicalcultural explanations. Abuse of children of foreign workers is a dilemma with no resolution in sight. Several innovative treatment and intervention programs provide private alternatives to ineffective or punitive state action. (Author abstract)