Dear Editor,
Over the twenty years since our school has been in existence, a number of cases have come to our attention involving children alleging rape. It goes without saying that this is not an isolated problem. In one such case, we have been reliably informed that the parents of the victim decided not to “press” charges and to “settle” the matter, whatever this means, with support from the police. The argument, in this case, one that we are all too aware of, was the need to protect the child from shame. This is no doubt a powerful rationale, and hard as it is to accept, the parents were the ones to make this decision, though we know for a fact that the child herself had no say in it.
We have had another case in which the alleged perpetrator was charged and let out on bail. The child at the time was eleven years old and still in primary school. She has since completed school having done well in the CSEC examinations but the case was still in the courts, almost seven years after the alleged rape. While in school she was cutting her arms and we know of one case where she attempted suicide. We have since lost contact with the family.
In both these cases, I believe our justice system, such as it is, has failed these children. And as far as the “Human Services Department” and “Child Protection Agency” in our country are concerned, the least said the better. Somehow when a child is abused our society looks the other way. While every accused person has the right to a fair trial when cases alleging rape drag on for several years’ justice is virtually denied. There are currently a number of rape cases in our court system, some of which have been going on for as many as ten years. Our country should be able to do much better by now to ensure justice for these victims.
Sincerely,
Swami Aksharananda
