The recent the rape-cum-murder of 10-year-old Nurulhuda Abdul Ghani made more than a few people sit up and take notice. The government has indicated that rapists be accorded the maximum sentence while such crimes that end in the death of the victim to be tried as murder cases.
While I applaud fervour, one wonders what difference this would make. Someone who is willing to risk the wrath of public scorn, face the prospect of prison and possible abuse behind bars (yes, felons have sisters and mothers too) will probably not be deterred by some legislative changes. Impose the maximum penalty on a repeat offender by all means. And send the murderers to the gallows. But a proper resolution must take place before and not after the fact.
As a matter of fact, most rape cases go unreported. Yet it is the same offender who will ultimately go way over the line and contribute to another gruesome headline. And why not? The stigma attached to being a rape victim and the lack of professional intervention, especially towards the victim is reason enough to suffer silently. Better to forget and get on with life than to have your life probed and other people wondering if somehow you had contributed to the crime... protection and privacy needs to be accorded to the wronged.
In a few months' time, I will have welcome my baby girl into this world. It makes me shudder to think that I do not know where to draw the line between being protective versus overly protective. What kind of world will she be born into? Well to begin with, it will be one where I am willing to pay the ultimate price to ensure her safety... and that is perhaps the first step every parent should take.
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