Miscellaneous
SC issues directive to govt to formulate laws to protect rape survivors
Women rights activists have welcomed the Supreme Court’s directive to formulate specific laws to help survivors of rape and their children born as a result of the rape rehabilitate in society, expressing their hope that the new legislation would encourage more survivors to open up about the sexual abuse they have faced.Women rights activists have welcomed the Supreme Court’s directive to formulate specific laws to help survivors of rape and their children born as a result of the rape rehabilitate in society, expressing their hope that the new legislation would encourage more survivors to open up about the sexual abuse they have faced.
A full bench of the Supreme Court, headed by Chief Justice Kalyan Shrestha and Justice Devendra Gopal Shrestha, on Thursday issued the directive to the government to formulate laws to protect rape survivors and children born as a result of the incident.
“This is good news. We lacked proactive and protective mechanism for rape survivors from the government which often times resulted in adolescent girls becoming vulnerable to forms of violence and often times forced to marry the perpetrator,” said Babita Basnet, a women rights activist.
Basnet added that the battle was only half won and that now it is important to see that the new law actually helps especially young girls rehabilitate in the society which will encourage more young girls and their families to report rape instated of letting the incident go unreported.
According to Nepal Police, a staggering number of 981 cases of rape were registered last year. Reports show that minor girls make more than half the number of rape survivors.
Women’s Rehabilitation Centre (Worec) had recorded 92 cases of sexual assault on minor girls between June 2014 and June 2015.
Worec had filed a writ petition in August 2013 demanding protection of the survivors of rape.