State must show firmer commitment

EDITORIAL

Bringing an end to violence against women and children

In the first 18 days of this year alone, 23 incidents of rape and attempted rape were reported in a leading Bangla daily. Of the victims, 15 are children, and among them was a two-year-old child. As incidents of rape, gang-rape, attempted rape, murder after rape and all forms of violence against women are on the rise across the country, according to various human rights organisations, we need to look at why we are not being able to stop the alarming rise of these incidents.

According to Ain O Salish Kendra, in the last five years, around 4,000 women and children were victims of rape and attempted rape. What is so disturbing is the fact that among the victims, 86 percent are children. And among the incidents where the victims were murdered after rape, two-thirds of the victims are children.

All information regarding the rape incidents is sent to different ministries concerned including the home ministry, according to police headquarters sources. One wonders, what do the ministries do with this information? Do they take any action to stop such outrageous crimes? And although the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs runs some programmes to address the issue, the impact of their programmes has so far not been visible. Also, the government needs to monitor whether the one-stop crisis centres (OCCs) established to provide rape victims with treatment, rehabilitation and legal assistance are run efficiently. In addition, the awareness-raising programmes of the government need to be strengthened in order to prevent our children from falling victim to this crime.

Finally, the government needs to overhaul the existing laws, amend the laws where needed and come up with fresh laws if necessary to deal with these cases. The low conviction rate in rape cases (only three percent among five tribunals in Dhaka in the last 15 years) is an indication that the laws are not enforced effectively. And as experts believe, we need to formulate a specific law for the protection of our children. Needless to say, all these would be possible only if the government undertakes vigorous measures to fulfil its political commitment to eradicate violence against women and children completely. 

• Courtesy: The Daily Star /Jan 20, 2019