Tackling the menace of rape

Rape is an unlawful act that grievously ruins society by breaching the reputation of girls of all ages.   There are many ways to tackle the menace of rape and to ensure the safety of our young girls. Rape affects their future and their dreams.  It requires the contribution of all members of society to tackle […]

Rape is an unlawful act that grievously ruins society by breaching the reputation of girls of all ages.  

There are many ways to tackle the menace of rape and to ensure the safety of our young girls. Rape affects their future and their dreams.  It requires the contribution of all members of society to tackle this menace. 

The menace of rape can be tackled through strict parental care and guidance to the girls. As rape occurs mostly on girls between the ages of 5 and 25 years, parents or guardians must be cautious about where their children go, who they are with, how they dress, talk and walk. These are just the basic ways that parents must pay attention to. They must quickly move in to arrest any deviation they see in the girl child to guard them from potential rapists. 

Moreover, the relevant law enforcement agencies must handle rape cases with all seriousness. 

Courts should ensure speedy trials of suspected rapists. Definitely, the judiciary has  an important role to play in tackling the menace of rape and it can help to reduce the rising number of cases every day.  

Likewise, security personnel should take care; watching out for some local areas or uncompleted buildings that the rapists mostly use to commit their bad acts.  

Also, societal concealment of rape makes the situation more painful. Many families find it shameful to admit their child is raped. Again, some members of society use it to subject the victim to stigma, making it difficult to report such cases. 

As long as people continue to take rape cases lightly, nothing will ever stop it from growing among them, which means, we must stand for each other and defend the rights of every member of society so as to live peacefully and free from being humiliated. 

Ali Lawan, Department of Mass Communication, Borno State University.