What Should be the Punishment for Rapists? (Vox Pop)

pharmacy

With the recent surge in cases of rape and other forms of sexual harassment in the country, the House of Representatives recently approved life imprisonment for any person convicted of rape. In addition, they approved a minimum of 20 years without an option of fine for anyone convicted of gang raping someone. Sequel to this, our reporter, Oladejo Adebayo, went to town to find out from people, what should be the proper punishment for rapists.

Their views are presented below:

Rapists should be executed

If we have to be sincere in our judgement, whoever rapes a young girl is not qualified to be referred to as human being, so such a person should be treated like an animal.Rape is horrible, because you are violated and cheated. Someone takes control of your body and hurts you in the most intimate way. You would discover that sometimes, rape victims are found dead, so there has to be straightforward judgement for this, which is capital punishment. The culprit should be killed.

Sincerely, the law has to provide real penalties for rapists and protection for victims, because the only thing the family and communitycan provide the victim is sympathy and support. The aftermath damages that rape causes are usually greater than the instant effect. How will a wife sue the person that raped her if her husband thinks the attack was more of an affront to him than a violation of his wife? How will the husband cope with the feeling that his wife had sex with another man? What about the guilt and sorrow that follows? So, to put an end to this, the perpetrator of the evil should be killed.

YinkaDurojaiye, UCH, Ibadan

Every action must have a reason

I am not saying this to this to support the act of rape in our society, but I believe strongly that most rape cases in this country are caused by one thing or another. If the victim is not accused of provocative dressing, it could be as a result of too much exposure to pornography or too much consumption of alcohol. We must consider these factors carefully before we pass judgement on anyone accused of rape. There is an adage that says “Without fire, there cannot be smokes” likewise, without these factors act of rape would not exist in our society.

I remember a scenario that happened in Agege around 1993, a lady dressed indecently and she passed through a very lonely road, where touts usually hide. The next thing we heard was that the lady was kidnapped and was taken to an undisclosed location, where they randomly had sex with her and she fainted afterwards. Now, let me ask you, who should we blame in this case? To me, indecent dressing is the major factor that causes cases of rape in our society and it is high time we put an end to it, if we want it to end.

Bose Lawal, IfakoIjaiye, Lagos

I suggest 7 years in prison

I have about two or three female friends who had beenvictims of rape at one time or the other, and up till today, none of the three victims has come back to what they used to be before the incident.One of the victims, who was my neighbour, cannot stay alone in the dark or where there are many males around. There is another one who is in her late thirties and she is yet to say yes to any male suitor.All she keeps saying is that all men are the same. I believe one of the things that had affected her is the emotional trauma she suffered after the incident.

Now, do you think anyone who has inflicted such a lifetime injury on another fellow human being should be allowed to go scot-free like that? To me, rape victims should be allowed to suggest whatever judgement they want the person who raped them to face, because they are the victims and they know the extent of the damage which the incident might have caused them. Meanwhile, in the absence of that, I suggest seven years jail term without any option of fine.

Motunrayo Bernice, UNAD, Ado Ekiti, EkitiState

The victim and the perpetrator should be punished

Rape, no doubt is a serious offence, but in most cases, indecent dressing and lack of moral value for oneself are the major causes in our society. There was a lady friend of mine back then in secondary school who was raped by her elder brother’s friend. She was the one who went to this guy to beg for money with the excuse that she wanted to change her phone. Based on the information we heard, the guy directed her to another friend of his, who was into internet fraud, and two of them became lovers. She was eventually gang raped during one of their immoral parties and since then, the guy was nowhere to be found.

Some ladies are angels when they are still under their parents roofs, but they turn to something else immediately they leave home. Go to higher institutions and see what ladies wear in the name of fashion. Even in the bible, there is a place where the scripture condemned those who make people to fall into sin and temptation. Punishing the perpetrators is not enough, as far as I am concerned, the victim too should be investigated to know if he or she too should be punished.

Oladejo Olabisi, Mokola, Ibadan, Oyo State

Prevention is better than punishment

The growing case of rape can be considered a consequence of parents’ neglect of their roles to their children. Many parents have abandoned their duties of imparting morality to their children and wards. They are so busy with their material pursuit that they don’t know the kind of company their children keep. Some even close their eyes and ears to whatever their children do or say. A preacher once attributed the rampart incidents of the criminal acts to the attitude of parents towards sex. According to him, some parents no longer consider sex as sacred. Sex is supposed to be a secret act but some parents, particularly those living in very tight accommodation, make public show of the act, even before the watchful eyes of their children.

But even with the best sex education, much change cannot be achieved, if our teenage and young women continue in their current dress culture. A situation where they put on clothes that expose parts of their bodies can be very dangerous. It takes only men who are totally in control of themselves to resist the temptation of their bodies. So, I don’t think our focus should be on the punishment; rather,it should be on how to rid our society of this ungodly act.

Celine Eweobaja, Ikorodu, Lagos

Rapists should be executed

If we have to be sincere in our judgement, whoever rapes a young girl is not qualified to be referred to as human being, so such a person should be treated like an animal.Rape is horrible, because you are violated and cheated. Someone takes control of your body and hurts you in the most intimate way. You would discover that sometimes, rape victims are found dead, so there has to be straightforward judgement for this, which is capital punishment. The culprit should be killed.

Sincerely, the law has to provide real penalties for rapists and protection for victims, because the only thing the family and communitycan provide the victim is sympathy and support. The aftermath damages that rape causes are usually greater than the instant effect. How will a wife sue the person that raped her if her husband thinks the attack was more of an affront to him than a violation of his wife? How will the husband cope with the feeling that his wife had sex with another man? What about the guilt and sorrow that follows? So, to put an end to this, the perpetrator of the evil should be killed.

Yinka Durojaiye, UCH, Ibadan

Every action must have a reason

I am not saying this to this to support the act of rape in our society, but I believe strongly that most rape cases in this country are caused by one thing or another. If the victim is not accused of provocative dressing, it could be as a result of too much exposure to pornography or too much consumption of alcohol. We must consider these factors carefully before we pass judgement on anyone accused of rape. There is an adage that says “Without fire, there cannot be smokes” likewise, without these factors act of rape would not exist in our society.

I remember a scenario that happened in Agege around 1993, a lady dressed indecently and she passed through a very lonely road, where touts usually hide. The next thing we heard was that the lady was kidnapped and was taken to an undisclosed location, where they randomly had sex with her and she fainted afterwards. Now, let me ask you, who should we blame in this case? To me, indecent dressing is the major factor that causes cases of rape in our society and it is high time we put an end to it, if we want it to end.

Bose Lawal, IfakoIjaiye, Lagos

I suggest 7 years in prison

I have about two or three female friends who had beenvictims of rape at one time or the other, and up till today, none of the three victims has come back to what they used to be before the incident.One of the victims, who was my neighbour, cannot stay alone in the dark or where there are many males around. There is another one who is in her late thirties and she is yet to say yes to any male suitor.All she keeps saying is that all men are the same. I believe one of the things that had affected her is the emotional trauma she suffered after the incident.

Now, do you think anyone who has inflicted such a lifetime injury on another fellow human being should be allowed to go scot-free like that? To me, rape victims should be allowed to suggest whatever judgement they want the person who raped them to face, because they are the victims and they know the extent of the damage which the incident might have caused them. Meanwhile, in the absence of that, I suggest seven years jail term without any option of fine.

Motunrayo Bernice, UNAD, Ado Ekiti, Ekiti State

The victim and the perpetrator should be punished

Rape, no doubt is a serious offence, but in most cases, indecent dressing and lack of moral value for oneself are the major causes in our society. There was a lady friend of mine back then in secondary school who was raped by her elder brother’s friend. She was the one who went to this guy to beg for money with the excuse that she wanted to change her phone. Based on the information we heard, the guy directed her to another friend of his, who was into internet fraud, and two of them became lovers. She was eventually gang raped during one of their immoral parties and since then, the guy was nowhere to be found.

Some ladies are angels when they are still under their parents roofs, but they turn to something else immediately they leave home. Go to higher institutions and see what ladies wear in the name of fashion. Even in the bible, there is a place where the scripture condemned those who make people to fall into sin and temptation. Punishing the perpetrators is not enough, as far as I am concerned, the victim too should be investigated to know if he or she too should be punished.

Oladejo Olabisi, Mokola, Ibadan, Oyo State

Prevention is better than punishment

The growing case of rape can be considered a consequence of parents’ neglect of their roles to their children. Many parents have abandoned their duties of imparting morality to their children and wards. They are so busy with their material pursuit that they don’t know the kind of company their children keep. Some even close their eyes and ears to whatever their children do or say. A preacher once attributed the rampart incidents of the criminal acts to the attitude of parents towards sex. According to him, some parents no longer consider sex as sacred. Sex is supposed to be a secret act but some parents, particularly those living in very tight accommodation, make public show of the act, even before the watchful eyes of their children.

But even with the best sex education, much change cannot be achieved, if our teenage and young women continue in their current dress culture. A situation where they put on clothes that expose parts of their bodies can be very dangerous. It takes only men who are totally in control of themselves to resist the temptation of their bodies. So, I don’t think our focus should be on the punishment; rather,it should be on how to rid our society of this ungodly act.

Celine Eweobaja, Ikorodu, Lagos