KATHAMNDU, Dec 31: It was time for the families and supporters to wrap up for the day after three hours of sit-in in front of Prime Minister´s residence in Baluwatar. But Umadevi Adhikari, 60, the mother of Saraswati Subedi, stood aloof staring blankly at the prime minister´s official quarter least hopeful of justice.
The protestors had gathered in front of the prime minister´s official residence for the third day demanding justice to Saraswati Subedi, Siba Hasmi, Sita Rai and Chhorimaiya Maharjan, among others, in the list of women who have been made victims of violence lately. “I have not eaten or slept well since my daughter´s death. [break]They killed my daughter and wanted me to settle the matter by accepting some money,” said Umadevi with tears rolling down her cheeks.
“Truth will never come out,” commented Chhorimaya´s daughter Sudha. “In our case, they clearly know who the culprit is, but they won´t take action,” said Sudha, whose mother has been missing for the past 10 months. “And all this because the culprit has the backing of Home Minister Bijay Kumar Gachhadar,” she added.
PM with stakeholders.
“Sudha´s words hold water,” noted human rights activist and Spokesperson for the National Women Commission Mohna Ansari. “Though political leaders express commitment to gender equality and justice, cases of violence against women are often suppressed. The media fans such issues but more often than not media does not follow the story till the perpetrators are brought to justice,” she said.
Senior advocate and human rights activist Meera Dhungana said it was unfortunate that the state is yet to criminalize domestic violence against women. “This is a result of the patriarchal structure of the society that the existing laws still treat domestic violence as a trivial issue,” she said. She also pointed out the need for a proper mechanism to check gender based violence.
About a dozen youths interviewed by Republica during the sit-in on Sunday stated that more than 40 NGOs turned up at the protest venue to take all the credits. “The government alone can´t do anything to make things better. Things can only change if the I/NGOs join hands with the government to fight for the cause,” said 19-year-old Egina Panthi, a bachelor level student at Nepal School of Social Science.
“It is conspicuous that the NGOs speak to make money rather than to bring a change. Gender equality would be a reality only when we change our mindset,” she added. “I/NGO representatives that turned up for the protest are here only to take the credits. They have not even met the victims or empathized with them,” added Suani, Panthi´s sister.
People protest in front of PM´s residence, Baluwatar. (Republica Files)
Speaking at the meeting of the women cell in his office, Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai stated that he would take action against the concerned officials and security agencies if they fail to investigate into the cases properly. A statement issued by the PM´s office stated that necessary steps would be taken to bring the guilty to book and provide justice to the victims at the earliest.
According to the National Women´s Commission, 61.3 percent of the women in the country do not know that there is any law against violence against women, 40 percent of women are suffering from one or the other form of violence, 45 percent face mental violence and 15.2 percent women are subjected to sexual violence.
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