Rape of women and children rising
Bangladesh has seen an alarming rise in child rape and abuse cases in recent times. In the first six months of this year, at least 496 children were raped, according to Bangladesh Shishu Adhikar Forum (BSAF), the latest one being a seven-year-old girl who was murdered after being raped. Moreover, in the last half year, there have been 23 other cases where children, after being raped, were murdered by the perpetrators and 53 cases where they were subjected to gang-rape.
The picture emerging from these statistics is extremely sickening and frightening. That we as a society have reached a point where child rape has become so widespread is shameful. And the problem really is that grave. From 2017 child rape increased by 18 percent in 2018, according to Ain o Salish Kendra. And this year's figure looks ominous. Despite the fact that abuse of children is among the worst crimes that can be committed, the number of such cases being filed is quickly rising. Considering also that many such cases always remain unreported, the actual number of cases of child rape and abuse must be higher.
When thousands of children are being raped and abused every year, we can no longer pretend that this is not a systemic or societal issue. Especially because, along with children, we are also seeing thousands of women being raped every year, as well as that already alarmingly high number increase rapidly, which lends further support to the conclusion arrived at by experts that our society is undergoing a phase of serious moral degradation. But it is not only that; the culture of impunity that has been established over the years—where rapists escaped justice because they were connected to influential quarters—is another reason why criminals commit such egregious crimes without a second thought, believing that they too will not be punished.
That law enforcers and other concerned authorities often fail to give full support to the victims—refusing to file rape cases, for instance—doesn't help either. This, along with other factors leading to the prevailing conditions, must change and the government should immediately act to reverse this horrific trend.
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