THE government鈥檚 high-handedness in dealing with the outrage manifest in protests sparked off the recent bout of rape incidents is not what the government should show. It should, rather, get down to work, rooting out the causes that create the space for such crimes and amend the laws to deterrently stop the recurrence of such incidents. Protests, which have continued for more than a week, flared up off a bout of rape incidents, especially of an eight-year-old girl in Magura, which took place on March 6. The girl died on March 13. Several rights and student organisations, joined in by ordinary people, have formed human chains, bought out processions and gathered in rallies demanding justice for the crimes that have happened in recent times and earlier and the safety of girls and women. They have also demanded amendments to relevant laws to effectively deal with rape incidents. Students and others banded as the Bangladesh against Rape and Oppression on March 11 marched towards the chief adviser鈥檚 residence to submit a memorandum, but the police stopped them near the InterContinental Hotel, where the police are reported to have attacked the protesters.
The way the police have attacked the protesters hardly has any reflection of the tenet of keeping law and order. The police the next day filed a case, vexatious in nature, against the protesters, who have taken to the streets to push for a legitimate cause, with 12 being named and more than 70 unnamed. While this constitutes enough of high-handedness on part of the government, the police are reported to be making night-time raids to arrest the accused. Allegations have it that a few named in the case have not attended the protests. All this appears to be a police ploy to create a fearful situation for the protesters to deflect the c
ause of the protests away from the public mind and a government move to relegate the main issues, which are just and legitimate, to the sidelines. The Judicial Services Association has also said that the Repression on Women and Children (Prevention) Act 2000 was made to ensure an effective trial of violence against and torture of women and children, but the objective has yet to be achieved. Experts believe that the government should make systemic, structural and procedural changes in the legislation what the protesters are pushing for.
Whilst the government should withdraw the vexatious case against the protesters, it should bring about the changes in the legislation that the protesters are pressing home to end crimes of rape and torture and ensure that it does not recur. Being high-handed would hardly make any difference.
