This Article was published in Kuensel for Saturday Legal Column Series
The news of rape and murder of an eight-year-old in Paro shocked the nation. This unthinkable crime pierced through the minds of every Bhutanese. Its good to see that, so many Bhutanese wept with the grieving parents and felt the tremors of such shocking wave of crime in country. Many took to social media calling for restoration of capital punishment in rage of anger and impulse. Such heinous crime does indicate that, the preventive measures for our children are questionable.
It is no secret that, with democracy, politicians are more prone to garnering votes, playing blame games or justifying the unjustifiable policies. The recent incidents must not be used for political gain or seeking public attention but also must not be forgotten. Instead, such incidence must serve as a wakeup call and reflect how should parents, the society, institutions and government protect our children from such vulnerabilities.
We must remember that, it is a constitutional duty of the state to ensure the “security of every person in the country”. Further, the Child Care and Protection Act requires that, state must “uphold the rights of children keeping them safe and promoting their physical and mental well-being”. Considering the vulnerabilities due to alcohol consumption and exposure to drug use on the development of children, there are adequate legal requirements prohibiting the sale or gifting of alcohol beverages and narcotic and psychotropic drugs to children. In fact, the violation of any of these provisions are categorized as criminal offences.
However, the actions from the state against those who violate these laws are hardly visible. For example, our laws prohibit any children from entering entertainment centers such as discotheques, night clubs, karaoke or other places designed for adults. Yet it is not uncommon to observe if not more, equal number of children below 18 years in these places and no one even bothers to check their age. Such free accessibility increases their vulnerability to sexual harassment, molestation, exposure to use of drugs and other social menace.
Another important area where the NGOs and many government institutions tend to fail is their inability to include men in their preventive mechanisms or campaign intended to protect the rights of women and children. Unfortunately, the culprits who commit these kinds of crimes against children are often men. The state, the non-governmental agencies or civil societies must ensure that, men are taken on board in any preventive measures against children hereafter. For example, there should be nationwide programs where men are involved in understanding the trauma of rape, why it is wrong to even think of raping or committing any crime against women or children.
At the onset, the state must immediately implement the provisions provided under the Trade Rules and Regulations, Child Care and Protection Act, Penal Code to discourage children from having accessibility to alcohol, drugs or entertainment centers which are not intended for them. These are most vulnerable places for our children to fall victim to these kind of atrocious and heinous crimes. The responsibility of protecting our children is not of the state alone, but a collective effort.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not reflect those of Kuensel or JSW School of Law.
Sonam Tshering
Lawyer, Thimphu
The news of rape and murder of an eight-year-old in Paro shocked the nation. This unthinkable crime pierced through the minds of every Bhutanese. Its good to see that, so many Bhutanese wept with the grieving parents and felt the tremors of such shocking wave of crime in country. Many took to social media calling for restoration of capital punishment in rage of anger and impulse. Such heinous crime does indicate that, the preventive measures for our children are questionable.
It is no secret that, with democracy, politicians are more prone to garnering votes, playing blame games or justifying the unjustifiable policies. The recent incidents must not be used for political gain or seeking public attention but also must not be forgotten. Instead, such incidence must serve as a wakeup call and reflect how should parents, the society, institutions and government protect our children from such vulnerabilities.
We must remember that, it is a constitutional duty of the state to ensure the “security of every person in the country”. Further, the Child Care and Protection Act requires that, state must “uphold the rights of children keeping them safe and promoting their physical and mental well-being”. Considering the vulnerabilities due to alcohol consumption and exposure to drug use on the development of children, there are adequate legal requirements prohibiting the sale or gifting of alcohol beverages and narcotic and psychotropic drugs to children. In fact, the violation of any of these provisions are categorized as criminal offences.
However, the actions from the state against those who violate these laws are hardly visible. For example, our laws prohibit any children from entering entertainment centers such as discotheques, night clubs, karaoke or other places designed for adults. Yet it is not uncommon to observe if not more, equal number of children below 18 years in these places and no one even bothers to check their age. Such free accessibility increases their vulnerability to sexual harassment, molestation, exposure to use of drugs and other social menace.
Another important area where the NGOs and many government institutions tend to fail is their inability to include men in their preventive mechanisms or campaign intended to protect the rights of women and children. Unfortunately, the culprits who commit these kinds of crimes against children are often men. The state, the non-governmental agencies or civil societies must ensure that, men are taken on board in any preventive measures against children hereafter. For example, there should be nationwide programs where men are involved in understanding the trauma of rape, why it is wrong to even think of raping or committing any crime against women or children.
At the onset, the state must immediately implement the provisions provided under the Trade Rules and Regulations, Child Care and Protection Act, Penal Code to discourage children from having accessibility to alcohol, drugs or entertainment centers which are not intended for them. These are most vulnerable places for our children to fall victim to these kind of atrocious and heinous crimes. The responsibility of protecting our children is not of the state alone, but a collective effort.
Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not reflect those of Kuensel or JSW School of Law.
Sonam Tshering
Lawyer, Thimphu
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