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Chumkis seek a stop to violence

Voice gets louder ahead int'l women's day today

Farhana Urmee
Chumki cheated death when her husband Shubho and his mother set her on fire on January 25 this year and she escaped with severe burns on her legs only.
After the incident, her in-laws confined her to the house and prevented herfrom seekinghelp.
On February 9 though, Aysha Akter Chumki's mother was able to bring her badly burnt daughter to the One-Stop Crisis Centre (OCC) at Dhaka Medical College Hospital. She is now being treated for burns on her entire legs at the burn unit of DMCH.
Such perpetrations of violence against women are rampant in the country as International Women's Day is celebrated across the globe today with the slogan ’Women and Men to End Violence against Women and Girls'.
Chumki, an HSC student, was married to Shubho only six
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months ago, after he raped her and the two families came to a mutual agreement to save both (he families' names after her parents filed a rape case against Shubho.
Since then the unfortunate girl's life has been a series of mental and physical tortures.
“My husband used to beat me regularly, he even hit my mother when she protested. There was no end to his demands for money and other dowry," Chumki said as she broke down into tears at the hospital bed.
Chumki's CNG driver father has lodged a case against Shubho with Sabujoagh Thana. This time though, Chumki Is wiser and determined not to let her parents settle out-of-court
The Sub-Inspector of Sabujbagh Police Station said the accused Shubho is absconding and also that Eolice were not able to trace the urnt clothes of the victim as firsthand evidence.
The police arc waiting for Chumki's medical report before taking any further action.
Chumki's is not an isolated case. According to Ain O Salish Kendra's annual reports 2007 and 2008 on women's rights, a huge number of girls and women from different age groups across the country are subjected to domestic violence.
According to the reports, 528 women were killed in domestic violence incidents in 2008. In 2007, 1,424 cases of domestic violence were reported while 1,304 incidents were reported in 2008.
Victims of only 38 per cent of these reported incidents went for legal support, showing the unwillingness of most victims to seek justice.
Experts feel the necessity of a total review of existing laws to uphold women's rights in the country and also to ensure strict implementation of the laws to check these violence.
Executive Director of Bangladesh National Woman's Lawyers Association (BNWLA) advocate Salma Ali recommended strict implementation of existing laws to cope with violence against women. She emphasises coordination among the government and non government organisations in addressing the issue.
Sultana Kamal, executive director of Ain O Salish Kendra, blamed the entire social structure for treatment of women as subordinates to men - both across educated and uneducated masses.
"Ignorance about existing laws and lack of information about how to get help hinders most of the victims from getting justice. The tendency to settle issues informally through negotiations is seen among all parties, the victim, the accused and even the law enforcers. This allows the criminals to go scot-free”, Sultana said pointing out the unwillingness of victims to file cases against the culprits.
She suggested review of the mechanism at government level, which would make law enforcers accountable for handling of their responsibilities in these issues.
"As long as the society accepts these incidents, violence will not end", said Munira Khan, Commissioner of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
“Violence has to be stopped at grassroots level for which local government bodies can be authorised with responsibilities to curb these kinds of violence against women,” she said.