She was feeling very giddy, smile so big maybe her face hurt and why shouldn’t she be happy? She got the job! She just wanted to share this happiness with her family and that too as soon as possible. She hailed for the rickshaw and climbed inside, after telling the location she became so absorbed in her happy thoughts that she didn’t knew where the rickshaw driver was taking her or that her world would turn upside down in matter of minutes. Two days later, she was found near a gutter all clothes torn, beaten and unconscious. Now even after so many days, yes she is breathing, her physical wounds have healed but barely alive or living. She curses her mere existence and that feeling multiplies when she sees how the world now treats her family with condemnation.
The blame is easily transferred with words like “provoking”, “luring”, “seductive”, “and enticing” and to some extent “beckoning”. The atrocity is overlooked where money gets involved and all is forgotten in a few days by everyone or maybe not by everyone. The victim is more demoralized, as she is considered a stain on our so-called cultural and broad-minded society; she is suppressed only because it’s her fault that she was born an inferior sex. And then her fate is decided by self-acclaimed Gods of the world that she should hide forever as she has been tainted forever and marked off the society. This is how a rape victim is destined to be treated in our society. The heinous act of brutality by the perpetrators is forgone and the victim becomes the sinner.
RAPE! Even the word is so distasteful so much that we cannot even begin to think how a victim must feel. Yes we all are against it as we have voiced our opinions a time or two just to make sure that we think about the society we live in. But how many times have we actually done something to ease their pain? Even now we hesitate to bring justice to the victims, and even now treat them “differently”. Was it their fault that they were forced or beaten to death or kept alive to live death each moment? Was it their fault that their lives have turned into an inferno? It’s disconcerting how the literate class keeps their mouths shut, claiming themselves as rational fools or puppets in front of money and power, and the perpetrators roam free in search of their next target or victim, as they know they won’t be convicted. Rape does not only ruin a single person’s life but also family’s.
“Rape is the only crime in which the victim becomes the accused.” – Freda Adler
How easy it is for us to let go such matters as Alhamdulillah, our mothers, daughters and sisters are safe. But may I ask if you have seen the future? Do you know what the next second may turn out to be? We strive for a better nation and to start with, we should eliminate such acts from its roots. Our daughters, sisters, friends, mothers deserve the right to breath in an environment which guarantees safety and security, and that means taking strict action against such heinous acts and bringing justice to every victim. We should understand that we could have been in the places of those victims and their families then how would have we felt if our plea was ignored and we were made helpless? For the sake of humanity, we should unite and work together to eliminate such evil from the society. To keep quiet on a sin is a greater sin. Not only the society should take actions but also the women should take some corrective measures to save themselves and prevent rape. Many of our rural areas women are unaware on how to prevent it; we should strive to teach every woman and girl on their protection and our men to stop rape. Our small initiatives can save many lives. Just Think.
