The past few weeks have exposed just how deep-seated sexual violence and rape culture are in our society. With multiple instances of rape being reported, the most shocking perhaps being the rape and subsequent murder of an eight-year-old girl in Magura, the whole nation has rightfully been asking for justice for the victims but for that justice to be served in time and without the kind of delays that our judiciary has historically been held hostage to.
According to reports, an organization comprising of lower court judges going by the moniker of the Bangladesh Judicial Service Association has been seeking the establishment of at least 200 more Women and Children Repression Prevention Tribunals in order to expedite trial cases corresponding to sexual violence and the oppression of women and children, while also advocating for dedicated Children's Courts and Human Trafficking Crime Prevention Tribunals in the process.
These demands are nothing if not rational, given the recent spate of reports and cases involving sexual violence against women and children. It is imperative that cases related to sexual oppression be handled with transparency while also respecting the privacy of victims adhering strictly to codes of conduct.
While legal cases and punitive measures against criminals is most definitely the order of the day, in the long run Bangladesh needs to reconcile with the fact that our society is entrenched in a form of patriarchy which gives way to the normalization of abhorrent phenomena such as sexual assault and child marriage. These are cultural issues and have to be dealt with as such.
Given just how prevalent instances of rape have become in recent times, it is incredibly easy for the issue to be politicized and used as a platform by vested quarters. This cannot be allowed to happen. Sexual violence is a real issue for Bangladesh, and for political parties to use this issue as a springboard to gain voters’ confidence is nothing if not disingenuous and disrespectful to survivors.
