Editorial
Kalapara arbitration
Travesty of justice
THE justice meted out to the raped victim through arbitration organised by local Awami League leaders at Kalapara will surely not assuage the hurt feelings of people across the country. And there is reason why the gaping wound may widen further. It is evident that the arbitrators wanted to settle the matter locally, allowing the rapists to go virtually unpunished.
Rape, of course, is a crime that arbitrators, whatever may be their social status or political clout, are not permitted to deal with. Reports coming from Kalapara clearly indicate that the arbitrators tried their best to look tough and neutral and ruthlessly exploited the vulnerability and helplessness of the victim and her family. The 16 rapists had to pay Tk. 10,000 each for shattering a budding life. If paying money, that too a paltry amount, is accepted as due punishment for rape, rule of law will no longer have any place in our society.
The whole arbitration was stage-managed with meticulous precision, and the victim was made to say publicly that she had no complaint against anybody! What a travesty of justice! And to cap it all, the arbitrators turned their ire on the journalists who had reported the incident.
Reportedly, a minister of state was present in Kalapara when the farcical arbitration was going on to save the rapists. However, neither he, nor the local AL leaders found anything wrong in what was being done to hush up the case. And the law enforcers were on the sidelines all the time! And so was the local administration.
Now, anyone with a modicum of respect for and understanding of law will ask whether the local AL leaders were aware that they actually committed another crime by organising the arbitration meeting. Who authorised them to pass a 'verdict' in a rape case? And who assured them that they could get away with such gross violation of the law? As for the law enforcers, the less said, the better. They have actually become a party to the miscarriage of justice in the form of arbitration.
The BCL supporters, at least a section of them, have already done enough to create an embarrassing situation for the ruling party. All the warnings and exhortations that have come from the AL top brass appear to have fallen on deaf ears. However, the Kalapara incident has cut deep into the mass psyche, given the bestiality and enormity of the crime. So, the ruling party should do its bit to bring the culprits to justice.
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