Every time, the first question they ask is what she was doing walking late at night or moving in such a dangerous area.
Apart from this statement being appalling, it clearly shows the mindset of our people. Instead of making strategies to fight these kind of atrocities, they put the blame on the dead victim who can’t even defend herself.
Just because there are no go zone areas in communities which residents are aware of, this does not mean that other people are also alert on that matter.
Before we put the blame on rape victims for their carelessness, I believe the best thing to do is to provide a safe place for our women and girls.
A rape case can happen anywhere and at anytime. It does not have to be at night for women to be susceptible. Many times have we come across rape cases whereby women are abused by the very people they trusted.
Setting curfew in certain risky areas is not enough to protect us from gangs. Sooner or later we shall still hear another rape case of an unsuspected victim. Worse still, these gangs can still get bold and invade people’s homes, rape anything that is wearing a dress or skirt.
Shall we then still blame it on the victims for walking in a wrong place and at the wrong time? The answer is No. The best alternative is to create security measures for our communities against such atrocities; putting the blame on victims won’t save our girls and women.
