[12 October, 2020] A draft of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Bill 2020 was approved bythe cabinet after incorporating the provision of death penalty as the highest punishment for rape. Thedraft was given final approval on 12 October, 2020 at a cabinet meeting.

Due to the recent increase in the incidents of rape, there has been a widespread demand for legalreforms. In response to that demand, the government added the death sentence as the highest form ofpunishment in rape cases. It is to be noted that in the existing law, the maximum penalty for rape hasbeen lifetime imprisonment. Thus, through the amendment, the penalty in rape cases will either becapital punishment or lifetime imprisonment. While the government’s immediate response to the massprotests and demands for legal reform through this step could help to subdue people’s discontent forthe time being, Ain o Salish Kendra (ASK) strongly believes that it is not possible to eradicate a horrificcrime such as rape from society merely by increasing the degree of punishment. ASK believes that thegovernment should take the people’s current manifestations of anger against rape and rapists as anopportunity to bring in necessary structural reforms for preventing rape incidents from happening. Bymerely increasing the punishment of rape without looking into and eradicating the patriarchal mindsetwhich results in one committing rape, which blames victims instead of the perpetrator making it difficultfor survivors to continue living a normal life in society, and due to which a survivor seeking justice facesmultiple challenges at every step; it will be impossible to eradicate rape from our society. A person is notborn a rapist; it is the society, education and the political environment which turns him into one.Without tackling these structures, we can never create a society and state that respects women.

It cannot be denied that to ensure justice for survivors, legal reform is necessary. However, suddenlyincreasing the punishment will not solve the main problem. Even within the existing law, where thepunishment is lifetime imprisonment, it has not been possible to ensure justice for survivors all over thecountry. Rapists continue to evade punishment and survivors continue to suffer and face harassmentdue to loopholes in the prosecution, investigation and judicial processes. Thus, ASK believes that legaland administrative reform must address the limitations in the existing laws and procedures. Suchreforms must involve discussions with key stakeholders to identify and address the structural factorswhich make it difficult for survivors to seek and attain justice. The definition of rape needs to beexpanded, while section 155(4) of the Evidence Act and other related section must be amended. Othernecessary reforms including the formulation of a Witness Protection Act, establishing a compensationfund for survivors and changes in the education system and curriculum must also be considered.

ASK urges the government to initiate discussions about these issues to establish a rape-free society. Atthe same time, countries throughout the world are slowly abolishing death penalty as it is incompatiblewith human rights standards. Without ensuring other necessary reforms and merely increasing themaximum punishment for rape and making the amendment effective will make the law incompatiblewith the principles of human rights in Bangladesh.

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