Myths and reality about the crime rate
Monday, 1 November 2010
Amirul Islam
Law and order conditions, according to the reviews that are made by the government from time to time at various levels, have improved in Bangladesh. The least recorded crimes over a six month period were, thus, recently claimed by the functionaries of the government as a positive indicator. On this basis, the law and order situation has, thus, been stated to be the best that Bangladesh has ever had .
But the picture seems to be a different one for the people at large. Every day in Dhaka city, they are waking up to learn about grisly incidents of multiple murders, rape, acid throwing, property grabbing, muggings, etc. The pages of newspapers remain filled with reports of such heinous murders. Thus, from reading or viewing newspapers and electronic media reports respectively, none can have a feeling of satisfaction that the crime rate is going down. Rather, it would seem that the rate is marking a worrying high trend.
The Home Minister, when replying to a question in the Jatiya Sangshad (JS) some time ago, stated that in the first ten months of the current year, more than 11 thousand crimes of various sorts were committed in the country. This number is certainly no less but higher than similar estimates made in previous years. The statement made by the Home Minister to the JS, does otherwise this run counter to what the leaders of the government have been claiming about improvement in law and order in general in the country.
On all realistic counts, there is hardly any logical ground to claim that the government has uniquely improved law and order conditions, as were earlier reflected in the lower tally of recorded crimes. As a matter of fact, an objective assessment would show that not only the total number of crimes have increased in the current year compared to immediate past years, but also heinous crimes like murder are also being done in a far greater number than before.
The crimes being committed are not remaining limited to traditional ones like murder, robbery, snatchings, etc. Crimes of a newer dimension such as bursting into government offices and vandalizing them, assaulting and intimidating government officials by well-armed cadres exercising political clout to do their bidding, property grabbing, etc., are also on the rise.
Then there is also Eve-teasing or unsolicited romantic or sexual advances made against young school-going girls or working females and doing bodily harm to them and their protectors for not gratifying the teasers. How the incidents of Eve-teasing have become alarming can be gleaned only from counting the number of such incidents in the recent days and keeping a tally over a longer period. This would show the real extent of the spread of such crimes. All such incidents, on a greater scale than ever before, do only reveal police's gross underperformance in these matters. Eve-teasers do continue to oppress their victims at various places. In all such incidents, resisting parents and relatives are often badly beaten up or stabbed as the teasers seek to molest school-going girls before the guardians or attempt their abduction.
The government can spare itself criticisms by calling a spade a spade and taking hard and uncompromising measures to improve law and order conditions.
Law and order conditions, according to the reviews that are made by the government from time to time at various levels, have improved in Bangladesh. The least recorded crimes over a six month period were, thus, recently claimed by the functionaries of the government as a positive indicator. On this basis, the law and order situation has, thus, been stated to be the best that Bangladesh has ever had .
But the picture seems to be a different one for the people at large. Every day in Dhaka city, they are waking up to learn about grisly incidents of multiple murders, rape, acid throwing, property grabbing, muggings, etc. The pages of newspapers remain filled with reports of such heinous murders. Thus, from reading or viewing newspapers and electronic media reports respectively, none can have a feeling of satisfaction that the crime rate is going down. Rather, it would seem that the rate is marking a worrying high trend.
The Home Minister, when replying to a question in the Jatiya Sangshad (JS) some time ago, stated that in the first ten months of the current year, more than 11 thousand crimes of various sorts were committed in the country. This number is certainly no less but higher than similar estimates made in previous years. The statement made by the Home Minister to the JS, does otherwise this run counter to what the leaders of the government have been claiming about improvement in law and order in general in the country.
On all realistic counts, there is hardly any logical ground to claim that the government has uniquely improved law and order conditions, as were earlier reflected in the lower tally of recorded crimes. As a matter of fact, an objective assessment would show that not only the total number of crimes have increased in the current year compared to immediate past years, but also heinous crimes like murder are also being done in a far greater number than before.
The crimes being committed are not remaining limited to traditional ones like murder, robbery, snatchings, etc. Crimes of a newer dimension such as bursting into government offices and vandalizing them, assaulting and intimidating government officials by well-armed cadres exercising political clout to do their bidding, property grabbing, etc., are also on the rise.
Then there is also Eve-teasing or unsolicited romantic or sexual advances made against young school-going girls or working females and doing bodily harm to them and their protectors for not gratifying the teasers. How the incidents of Eve-teasing have become alarming can be gleaned only from counting the number of such incidents in the recent days and keeping a tally over a longer period. This would show the real extent of the spread of such crimes. All such incidents, on a greater scale than ever before, do only reveal police's gross underperformance in these matters. Eve-teasers do continue to oppress their victims at various places. In all such incidents, resisting parents and relatives are often badly beaten up or stabbed as the teasers seek to molest school-going girls before the guardians or attempt their abduction.
The government can spare itself criticisms by calling a spade a spade and taking hard and uncompromising measures to improve law and order conditions.