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posted by janrinok on Sunday April 22 2018, @05:44AM   Printer-friendly
from the make-the-punishment-fit-the-crime dept.

After a number of high-profile crimes that sparked outrage and protests, India will allow the death penalty for those convicted of raping girls under the age of 12:

The executive order was cleared at a special cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. It allows capital punishment for anyone convicted of raping children under the age of 12. Minimum prison sentences for rape against girls under the age of 16 and women have also been raised.

According to Reuters, which has seen a copy of the order, there was no mention of boys or men.

Two recent rape cases have shocked the nation. Protests erupted earlier this month after police released horrific details of the rape of an eight-year-old Muslim girl by Hindu men in Kathua, in Indian-administered Kashmir in January. Anger has also been mounting after a member of the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was accused last week over the rape of a 16-year-old girl in northern Uttar Pradesh state.

India's poor record of dealing with sexual violence came to the fore after the 2012 gang rape and murder of a student on a Delhi bus. This led to huge protests and changes to the country's rape laws. But sexual attacks against women and children have since continued to be reported across the country.

Some activists have criticized the application of the death penalty, saying it will deter reporting, especially given that almost all perpetrators are family members or acquaintances.

Also at Reuters and Bloomberg. Editorial at The Indian Express.

Related: Indian Government Attempts to Suppress Rape Documentary


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  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 22 2018, @07:00PM (1 child)

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 22 2018, @07:00PM (#670441)

    You are a moron apparently too literate for your own good. Maybe if you had a little more intelligence then words wouldn't be wasted on you. Why do we have legal ages for drinking / smoking / driving? Why anything? You obviously are too upset about this topic to approach it with any level of rationality.

    All rapes are horrible, but if a country wants to create different legal definitions of HOW horrible then age is the only objective way. Since individuals have different rates of maturation any set age limit is inherently shallow, but care to offer a better system? How would you determine if a teen should be allowed to drink while others should be made to wait until their thirty two?

    Oh right "And I certainly don't think the legal system has any business making these completely subjective, irrational determinations" we should just leave all such decisions up to mob rule, cause that always works so well! In an ideal world we would need no laws since everyone would get along and resolve their conflicts peaceably and amicably. laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawl

  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 22 2018, @08:58PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Sunday April 22 2018, @08:58PM (#670481)

    Why do we have legal ages for drinking / smoking / driving? Why anything?

    We're not talking about restrictions set in place because of the belief that the people being restricted can't handle a substance or activity to the same degree that someone else could. We're talking about the value of life. I do not think an 11 year old's life is more valuable than a 12 year old's (or older). Maybe you do, but I don't.

    You obviously are too upset about this topic to approach it with any level of rationality.

    You are wrong. I am not upset, but merely disagree with this approach.

    All rapes are horrible, but if a country wants to create different legal definitions of HOW horrible then age is the only objective way.

    And I'm saying that I don't see the point in attempting to legally ascertain "how horrible" a rape is based on age.

    Oh right "And I certainly don't think the legal system has any business making these completely subjective, irrational determinations" we should just leave all such decisions up to mob rule, cause that always works so well! In an ideal world we would need no laws since everyone would get along and resolve their conflicts peaceably and amicably. laaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaawl

    What a complete and total straw man. The subject was the value of life, nothing more. Enjoy your logical fallacies.