My first reaction, as well as that of the many people who commented online to the Malta Times report, “Probation for 17-year-olds who raped girl, 14”, was that surely probation was not enough for that kind of crime.
I wondered whether there would be an appeal, although according to the report, “the prosecution and the defence agreed that what had happened was an act of foolishness by three young men who thought their deed to be some achievement. (att to bluha ta' tlett guvintur minorenni li hasbu le qed jaghmlu xi bravata).”
So no crime then? What were the courts projecting calling the gang rape of a 14 -year-old girl an act of thoughtlessness and foolery, only done to show ‘bravura’? That word bravata alone really raised my heckles.
If it is the same as bravado, is that how the court saw the young men’s thinking, i.e. that their actions were courageous, daring and gutsy? The Maltese dictionary gave me the meaning of “bravata” as an act of bravery, a well-accomplished piece of work, or an escapade.
If the court used the word ironically, it is certainly badly done. Can such educated people not see the misuse of the word? Are we being told that it’s only youthful exuberance when young boys want to show how macho they are by resorting to sexual assault? Is that really how the magistrate, prosecution and defence lawyers read this? What kind of a message was being given out here?
I would have expected much harsher words to be meted out to the boys even if probation was the right solution. As The Malta Confederation of Women’s Organisations said in their press release “Admittedly, their youth and clean records entitle them to a second chance. But not to the extent of playing down what they did as ‘an act of foolishness’. That, to say the least, is degrading, humiliating and horribly insensitive to the victim and to society in general.”
I sent off an email to the Police Community and Media Relations Unit (CMRU) to find out more. I was impressed by the prompt response. As the police rightly told me justice needs to be seen to be done, but it was not seen to be done by the public in this case.
According to the police, the press report failed to mention that the girl involved was in court accompanied by her lawyer, who also agreed with the verdict. As often happens just reading a media report does not give one the full picture. Should the courts have a press office that could rectify or clarify press reports?
According to the police source, the young people were all drunk in a house where no adults were present and things got out of hand, which of course is no excuse to what happened. I do not know how the girl has been affected, or whether she was just advised to go along with what was being decided. Did the reporter try to get a comment from the girl or her lawyer after the verdict?
The sentence is not going to be appealed. However, a point made by the police did make me ponder. Do we really think that Corradino Prison was the right place for 17-year-olds? There is no facility for the incarceration of young men, or women.
So here is a challenge for the new administration. We need an institution that caters for the young first offenders of serious cases that is a truly corrective place, rather than the current situation that puts young men, or women, in a place where influences are more likely to engender criminality and also puts the vulnerable at risk.
Apparently, the law on rape also needs to be amended since as it currently stands rape is seen as a crime against morality not an individual. It is right that the public expresses outrage when such things occur. But is outrage enough? We are constantly bombarded with outrage online on all kinds of issues, but is it getting results?
How much are young people being told on what is and is not acceptable in sexual behaviour by their parents at home and their teachers in schools? How will this very disturbing case affect future behaviour patterns of parents and teachers? What kind of sex education goes on in schools? Yet another challenge for the new government.
A recent report from the GU (Genitourinary) Clinic that deals with sexually transmitted diseases, which incidentally we get a repetition of every few years, informed us it found youngsters’ ignorance about their bodies and sexual health dumbfounding and that the high rate of casual sex and very low rate of condom use has remained unchanged. It highlighted the need for a thorough revision of sex education delivered in schools.
Are parents going to be more vigilant and give guidance on the sexual behaviour of their children? Does the media, especially television, do enough to portray violence against women as totally unacceptable?
The Police Force also recognises that it has the role of an educator. In this respect, it integrates and blends in with other educational institutions in order to educate especially children in preventive measures and co-ordinates educational lectures in schools, Local Councils and the various NGOs. Time to organise something on sexual behaviour?
0 comments:
Post a Comment