Within a span of about a week two Indian girls have died after being sexually assaulted by multiple, vicious assailants. A 17-year-old girl ingested poison after she claimed she had been gang-raped. In her suicide note she blames her rapists for her death. The three suspects, including a female accomplice, have since been arrested. The unnamed girl claimed she was raped on November 13th during the Hindu festival of Diwali. According to CNN, her formal case wasn’t registered by police until 14 days later! The victim’s parents have stated that police officials not only urged the girl not to charge the assailants, but instead to marry one of them!
As if that atrocity wasn’t horrendous enough, a 23-year-old Indian girl passed away on Saturday from injuries stemming from a violent gang-rape on a bus on December 16th where her male companion was also assaulted. The rapists robbed them of their belongings before dumping them at the side of a road, according to a police statement. Six suspects are now under arrest, including the bus driver and a minor. The male companion was discharged from the hospital, but the girl was flown to Singapore. In a statement after she was received at the hospital a representative stated: “Our medical team’s investigations upon her arrival at the hospital … showed that in addition to her prior cardiac arrest, she also had infection of her lungs and abdomen, as well as significant brain injury.” Unfortunately, the girl did not survive her injuries.
Massive protests have flourished across New Delhi. The public is outraged in the way the government seemingly doesn’t protect its female population. According to the Times of India, the government announced plans Thursday to “name and shame” convicted rapists by posting their names, images and addresses on official websites.” Seema Sirohi, Indian Council on Global Relations, told CNN that most women in India had their own stories of sexual harassment and abuse. “To be a woman in India is not an easy proposition. Every woman has experienced some kind of abuse on public transportation, lewd remarks on the street. No matter how conservatively you are dressed, you are still open season for the men,” she said.
She added: “there are a lot of reasons why this happens, but the patriarchal system is one, a lack of policing is another and general treatment of women which is not equal to men, even though it may be so under the law.”
One can only hope the Indian government will now do everything it can to prevent future sexual assaults.
I’ve read many articles on this story. Many people feel that the assailants should be killed under the death penalty. I personally I’m against the death penalty. I feel that it is an easy way out for these crazed and sadistic individuals. I think living the rest of their miserable life in a jail cell, while thinking about their horrendous actions is true punishment. I know many of you will disagree.
What do you think?
