Editorial
Women's vulnerability to repression growing
Stringent enforcement of law is the answer
AMONG the major causes of concern for us all is the frequency and severity of oppression women are subjected to in Bangladesh. News of rape, violence and murder of young girls and women for dowry often hit the headlines. Then we read horrendous accounts of young girls being trafficked across borders to be sold in brothels; and how faces of young brides are totally disfigured by acid. Early marriage, early pregnancy and death from complications at childbirth are other forms of oppression that hardly draw attention of the law enforcing agencies. A report in this daily on Saturday, quoting Home Minister Sahara Khatun said that at least 1,479 women were raped in six months beginning from January of 2009. Reportedly, around 3,584 and 3,462 women were violated in 2007 and 2008 respectively.
Lack of education, lack of economic power and weak social status of women, especially in rural society, make them vulnerable to exploitation by men. Any conflict of interest with men leads to physical assault and mental torture that often leave permanent scars on body and mind. This is one of the worst forms of human rights violation that continues to plague this country.
No civilized society can allow such criminal acts to go unchecked, but it seems the rate of violence on women in various forms is only increasing every year because of a social system that does not address the situation with due seriousness. In all earnest it can be said that this one indicator alone will not make it easy for us to elevate our position amongst the developing countries of the world.
It is argued by many activists that there is veritable lack of resolve on the part of the administration in undertaking campaigns to create awareness about the well-being of women and sending the perpetrators before the court of law. It needs to be mentioned that there are appropriate laws in the country, such as, Dowry Prohibition Act, Prevention of Women and Child Repression Act (2000), Suppression of Immoral Traffic Act 1933, Family Court Ordinance, Cruelty to Women (Deterrent Punishment) Ordinance and Trafficking in Women and Children Act 1993 etc., that would provide the victims with the needed legal help. What we need is strict enforcement of these laws to try the violators and give them severe punishment.
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