Punishing predators

Regular reports come in of rape, sodomy, molestation and other crimes committed by teachers at both seminaries and also regular schools. One of the most recent cases involves a senior cleric at a madrassah in Lahore, who is accused by his young student of sodomising him; the student’s claim is seen by most as verifiable since he has also (video) recorded the crime. The cleric was arrested after escaping police and is reported to have confessed to his crime in police custody. However, he has since withdrawn his confession and the matter will go before the judiciary. The victim has said he is facing threats and such actions obviously deter families from continuing with the matter as a social stigma. In 2017, a case in Peshawar came to light in which the head of a religiously oriented school was accused of raping students and others who worked at the school and placing cameras to record the act. Despite the presence of this evidence, he has now received bail from the Peshawar High Court after being sentenced to 105 years by a Sessions Court. This is a peculiar alteration in sentencing and suggests the state will need to step in.

There are many other such cases from all parts of the country. We need to take more stringent action against the perpetrators. In many cases, especially in the absence of reliable and sturdy witness protection law, people who are victims of persons who use their power to torture and molest others are not willing to give evidence in open court. The videotaped evidence can also be used against them by being provided to families and therefore creating a scandal within homes. In the past women who have complained of sexual assault, sometimes after marriage, have had acid thrown on them by husbands as a form of rejection or to punish the victim rather than the perpetrator.

It is the perpetrators who need to be punished – consistently and under the law. There can be no greater crime than carrying out an offence against a helpless child. It doesn’t help matters that every actor who has a role to play in curbing child abuse – be it the state, teachers or the media – puts their own narrow interests above that of protecting children. They have their own agendas to pursue, and the only time attention is paid is in high-profile cases. Media coverage is also dramatic but short-lived. Until there is a major overhaul in our mindset, we will be unable to protect the weak and vulnerable. The fact is that, in a country where students are lynched to death and sexual assault is common, apathy still prevails. There needs to be a societal consensus to better protect children from predators. People guilty of these crimes must be brought to justice, so an example can be set and people are deterred from committing such crimes and then blackmailing victims by videotaping them, further victimising them.