Why is it so hard for our legal system to bring perpetrators of sexual violence to justice?
In the first place, it is extremely difficult for women, not to mention children, to bring forward their cases to the police. This is because of the stigma attached to victimization, as well as the convoluted and daunting legal machinery they are subjected to.
Regrettably, our police are not adequately trained to handle matters of great sensitivity such as rape and sexual violence, and so, they often end up doubly victimizing rape victims, asking unwarranted questions or shaming the person who should be protected.
That is why it is all the more demoralizing that when the brave ones do step up and report these crimes, they are left waiting indefinitely for a justice that never arrives.
This is a sad commentary on our justice system, which needs to be fixed as a matter of priority.
Right now, there are a staggering 165,327 cases pending in the Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunal, and of these cases, some 34,233 cases have been pending for over five years.
It is not an acceptable state of affairs that so many women and children would have to wait for more than half a decade to see any sliver of justice. Worse yet, they have no reassurance that their assailants will ever see justice.
No doubt, would-be rapists and abusers are emboldened by the laxness of this system. It is no wonder that the general public is losing faith in the ability of our legal system to protect them.
In the year 2020, let us say enough is enough, and let us truly change things around by giving these cases the importance they are due. A country that wishes to be seen as a developed nation needs to do a better job of protecting its women and children.
