There are numerous types of crimes in the world, and every nation and society has a corresponding punishment to these crimes. A punishment for a certain crime may seem too harsh or too mild to others; for instance, the vast majority of the world views with horror the practice of cutting off the hands of a thief, in societies which practice a strict interpretation of the Islamic Laws of Sharia. But they, in turn, would look askance at the moderately mild jail sentence of Bernie Madoff, who swindled thousands of Americans of billions of dollars, reducing many of them to poverty.
But I am of the opinion that there is a crime for which the punishment is surprising mild, if not a joke. This crime occurs in every society in the world, no matter how advanced or how primitive, across all races and across all religious denominations. The crime is rape. And what may seem strange is that the punishment for rape, across societies, races and religions is shockingly mild; when you consider the gravity of the crime. But this should come as no surprise to anyone. For who commits rape? Men. And who writes the law? Men.
Murder is considered to be the ultimate crime, for it ends the life of the victim; something which cannot be restored. It leaves the loved ones of the victim heart-broken, and creates a void which can never be filled. But, for the victim, the ordeal is over; and for those he/she leaves behind, the burden of the loss decreases with the passage of time.
But rape is in a class by itself. The victim goes through almost every physical and mental trauma imaginable without the sweet release of death. She is left with the memory of the physical AND mental trauma. Unless her brain can find some way to block the memory of the horrific crime, she relives the crime over and over again, for every moment of her life, till the end of her life. As to her near and dear ones, her very presence is a constant reminder of the crime and a never ending source of pain and misery. And we, the ever hypocritical members of society, what do we do? We look down at the victim of rape as dirtied and marked. And instead of understanding that she is a victim who deserves every support possible, we point at her, behind her back, whispering with gleeful joy, “She was the one who got raped.”Revelling in the fact that it happened to her, not to us, or some member of our family. A woman may have had consensual sexual relations with a thousand men and walk about in society with her head held high. But woe to a victim of rape, we point fingers at her and expect her to hang her head in shame and withdraw from society. So, which crime do you think is more heinous?
And what do you say about Child Rapists? What words can you use to describe “men” who are lower than animals? They are nothing less than monsters walking amidst us. With adult women, there is the possibility of consent, given by her, but denied when the act is discovered. But a Child? What does a child know? How does a child deserve to have her innocence stripped away in such a monstrous manner?
Penalties for crimes serve a dual purpose. The first purpose is to punish the perpetrator of the crime; but the second, and more important, in my humble opinion, is to serve as a deterrent for all those who would contemplate committing crimes.The laws are already there for the punishment of rapists. But I do not subscribe to them. The gravity of the crime should be reflected in the weight of the punishment. I pray that God grants all men the wisdom to understand and acknowledge that rape needs a more befitting punishment.
If it were down to me, I would suggest castration for cases of proven rape of adults; and summary castration for Child Rapists. Let them also live with the shame of their deeds and with the knowledge that they can never ever commit the same monstrous deed again. Jailing rapists is a joke, for they walk out free in a few short years, and death is too good a punishment for them.
