DISCONTENT among youths flared up again in the city on Monday following the rape incident of a Dhaka University student. The second year student was raped and tortured by unidentified persons in the capital’s Kurmitola area on Sunday night after she got down of a bus. Some of the victim’s friends rescued and brought her to Dhaka Medical College Hospital. Students protested the incident and asked for quick arrest of the perpetrators. The DU students gave 48-hour ultimatum to government to nab the criminals blocking the Shahbagh intersection. Multiple horrifying incidents of sexual violence in the recent months have raised grave concern among the people over the safety of women and children. This type of sexual violence women has become rampant in the country due to culture of impunity, political backing to criminals, case backlog, sluggishness and social stigma over rape victims.
More than 700 women and children were reportedly raped in the first six months of 2019. In comparison, there were 942 similar cases recorded in all of 2018. But the real number is likely to be far higher, pointing out that many victims do not report sex crimes to police due to the pervasive fear of being blamed for the rape or hated and disowned by their own families. What’s unfortunate is that the law enforcers and the judiciary have failed to be proactive to stop rape and violence. Our past experience says that almost in all incidents, the criminals get political protection. They become more powerful as local police keep close relations with them. It’s a vicious circle comprising local political leaders, professional criminals and police members.
We can’t hide the truth that general people are now most helpless. This particular rape incident has proved again that nobody is safe in any part of the country, even in the capital where largest number of law enforcers is deployed. Isn’t it a shame?
