Death to child rapists will harm survivors, Activists write to PM

The group sought withdrawal of the amendment and better implementation of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. About 89 per cent of cases under this Act are pending and conviction rate in child sexual offences is as low as 29.6 per cent. 

And, according to the National Crime Records Bureau, the conviction rate at the national level is 28 per cent. The activists said that the fear of a death penalty would act adversely on children and their families as they may feel guilty of sending someone they know to the gallows. Also, the possibility of being sentenced to death for rape can motivate the accused to kill the victim. 

Further, imposition of death penalty has disastrous emotional and physical impact upon the family members, including the children, of the offender. The group proposed a central-level model victim and witness protection scheme that can provide a framework to ensure support and protection to child victims. 

Noting the poor conviction rate, the activists demanded that the police and the prosecution be held accountable for lapses in investigation and argument, respectively. They also sought to enhance awareness, prevention drives within the community and schools, challenging stereotypes, and a revamp of legal systems as better solutions besides focussing on victim compensation and restorative practices. 

“The collective shame that we feel as a society should translate into collective responsibility towards our children by ensuring that children are protected and supported when they report sexual offences,” professor Andrew Sesuraj M, one of the signatories said. 

“The child-friendly procedures should be followed diligently, investigation and prosecutions strengthened, and the necessary personnel, resources, courtrooms put in place. More importantly, efforts towards prevention of sexual abuse need to be intensified,” he added. 

The professor said that death penalty is not the solution. “It will not make our children safer. Instead of serving its purpose in reducing cases of rape, the introduction of ‘death penalty’ for ‘child rape’ is anti-child, regressive and counterintuitive, and will inevitably endanger children,”  Sesuraj said.