Only quick justice can end violence against women & children: Experts
Dhaka: The culture of impunity, lack of rule of law, moral degradation and vulnerabilities of women and children in society are among the main reasons behind the recent spate of child killing and rape, experts said.
They think incidents like brutal killings of children and rape will come down to the zero level if the perpetrators can promptly be identified, tracked down and brought to justice.
They, however, said killing the offenders in ‘crossfire’ cannot be a justified action to contain the crimes as it may turn boomerang and the innocent people can be victimized.
‘Children might have been killed earlier in our society, but the way children are being killed and tortured now is far more brutal… it was never there in our society. The incidents are so unexpected, despicable and distasteful make us deeply worried,’ Chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Dr Mizanur Rahman told UNB.
He said the incidents that happened recently gave him an impression that the entire society has been suffering from mental perversion. ‘Observing the gravity, brutality, frequency and the degree of recent atrocious and heinous killings of children, we can surely say the violence against children have got a new dimension in our society.’
Dr Mizan said the incidents of rape are not new in Bangladesh society. ‘As the number of all types of media has increased in the country, probably we’re now getting more information about such incidents than in the past. If we see the number of incidents happening now, we can easily say we’re now passing time when rape incidents marked a sharp rise. I shouldn’t talk about its magnitude and level of escalation without any research.’
Asked about the reason behind the growing incidents of repression on children, he said, ‘When the culture of impunity is nurtured in a society and when the offenders are spared, then tendency to indulge in crime gets a boost and the criminals get encouraged.’
The NHRC Chairman regretted that though unfortunate it is the fact that the criminals in the country are not being identified quickly and meted out exemplary punishment as per the law of the land.
He said the perpetrators having political clouts and muscle power and who have financial solvency are successful in dodging the law.
‘Women and children are repeatedly fall victims to attack as they are the most vulnerable in our society. The children who have recently been subjected to brutality were from poor families, Dr Mizan observed.
He said the state should be more aware of its responsibility to ensure the security of all of its citizens to check such incident. ‘They shouldn’t only give lip services, but must prove it through their action. There’s no barrier to exercising power by the state for ensuring its citizens’ security. But it has to be within the legal framework.’
Dr Mizan does not think extrajudicial killing of offenders is an effective action to prevent such incidents. ‘Killing criminals in gunfight is not acceptable in a civilized society. Law enforcers’ duty is to hunt down the criminals and bring them to justice, instead of trying and killing them.’
The NHRC boss further said, ‘I can guarantee that the crimes against women and children will drastically decline and gradually dip to the zero level if the offenders are arrested swiftly and brought to justice.’
Contacted, Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan Kamal said the incidents of child murder and rape are social problems and only penal measures will not be enough to prevent it.
‘Law enforcement agencies alone cannot prevent such incidents. Social awareness is needed to contain it,’ he noted.
Citing statistics, the minister claimed that the incidents of child murder and rape did not increase significantly compared to the ones happened in the past.
Asked whether such crimes increased due to impunity, Kamal said it can be one of the reasons but not the only reason.
Director of Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum (BSAF) Abdus Shahid Mahmood said 191 children were killed and 280 raped during the January-July period this year. Besides, he said, 37 children were killed and 50 raped in July alone.
He suggested the government to take quick and exemplary action against the perpetrators. ‘The government should take the issue seriously and continue its action against such heinous crimes.’
Mahjabeen Haque, an Associate Professor of Dhaka University’s Department of Educational and Counselling Psychology, said the main reasons behind the surge in child killing and rape incidents are lack of moral learning of children, the rule of law, consistent action against the offenders and the culture of impunity.
She said children should be given moral education at the family level and in educational institutions and in society. ‘Our parents are only chasing their dreams of having the GPA-5 of their children’s in the exams, but they’re not aware of moral education of their children, which is necessary to make groom them up good human being.’