Rape and sexual violence cases : Most victims fear change explanations
-Rita Lama
Ghorahi, Dec 19 : The victim side had lodged a complaint at the Area Police Office Bhalubhang on January 2, 2019 noting Samir Ali, 21, of Rapti rural municipality raped a 28-year-old disabled woman.
The victim woman recounted that Ali raped her on January 1 while she was asleep at her home. After the health examination of the victim, police arrested him and registered a rape case on January 2.
The district court sentenced the eight-year jail term to Ali on June 24, 2019.
In another case, the survivor side registered a complaint against Mukesh BK, 18, of Ghorahi sub-metropolis-2 on 30 January 2019 for raping a five-year girl. It came to revelation that the boy took her to the rivulet side on temptation and raped her.
Police arrested the rapist on the same day and filed a rape case. On May 10, 2019, the district court ordered the criminal to be sentenced to 16 years in prison and provide the victim with Rs 150,000 as compensation from the local level.
Similarly, the victim side filed a complaint at the District Police Office on February 25, 2019 alleging 31-year-old Sunil Thapa of Ghorahi sub-metropolis raping an 11-year-old girl. The victim side registered a complaint against Madan BK, 35, of the Ghorahi sub-metropolis at District Police last February 19 for trying to rape a 16-year adolescent girl.
Likewise, the victim had a registered complaint against Nabin Sharma, 35, of the Tulsipur sub-metropolis-6 at the Area Police Office Tulsipur last June 17 allegedly raping a 25-year-old woman.
These are some of the representative cases in different parts of Dang. According to the INSEC’s Human Rights Year Book-2019, a total of 69 incidents of rape, attempted rape and sexual violence occurred in Dang during the year 2019.
Mediation has been adopted to resolve the criminal incidents of rape while some survivors have not even filed to register a complaint, said INSEC sources. Those lodging complaints are also found with changing their explanations. Almost 50 percent of rape and sexual violence survivors are found to have changed their explanation right from the complaint to court hearing.
The survivors altered their explanations when the perpetrator is strong, the Human Rights Year book stated.
In lack of protection assurance, the victims are found to change their explanation against perpetrators, the report added.
Those mentally strong and those having a sense of justice are only found to keep their stance till the clearance of the cases. There are several changes for changing explanations.
“Those who are not secure and have no shelter, they are always vulnerable and are compelled to change their explanation”, claimed the legal practitioners, adding such happens in the rape case against the powerful people.
