HOME PAEDOPHILIA ON THE RISE IN GOA -------------------------------------------------- |
IN DEPTH THE PROFILE OF A PAEDOPHILE |
STRAY THOUGHTS By Rajan Narayan SUBHASH, ZANTYE AND ISIDORE ALL SET TO JUMP SHIP -------------------------------------------------- |
FINANCE THE SCEPTRE OF HIGH INFLATION By C.S. Mirchandani -------------------------------------------------- |
ONE MAN’S VIEW By Philip Knightly IMMUNE TO KILLINGS -------------------------------------------------- |
AD VALUE HUMAN FACE OF INDUSTRY By Ramesh Narayan -------------------------------------------------- |
TONGUE-IN-CHEEK By Aravind Bhatikar MARAMARI ON MARA-MARI BEACH -------------------------------------------------- |
HEALTH DOCTORS FAIL TO KEEP ABREAST By Dr. V. N. Jindal -------------------------------------------------- |
EATING IS FUN A variety food column By Tara Narayan THE NEW TASTE OF HEALTH HOME & HEALTH THE ‘ROUND TABLERS’ FROM THE NETHERLANDS… By Tara Narayan -------------------------------------------------- |
CAREERS VAST POTENTIAL FOR BIOINFORMATICS Courtesy: ‘A Directory of Higher Educational 2004’ published by Malayala Manorama -------------------------------------------------- |
ON STAGE-OF STAGE YOUNG TALENT AND SOCIAL THEMES RULE TIATR STAGE By Daniel F. De Souza -------------------------------------------------- |
GOENKARANCHO AVAZ |
ARCHIVES
|
IT IS BAD enough that Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar sat on the Ric Wood Report which warned that Goa had become a major destination for paedophiles. The Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar like despots through the ages has never been able to stomach criticism of bad news. So not surprisingly as he has done repeatedly in the past he blamed the messenger. Like the proverbial devil misquoting the scriptures for his unholy purpose the Chief Minister claimed that the Tehelka expose was part of a conspiracy to woo paedophiles to Goa. The Chief Minister in what is described as an impromptu press conference claimed that paedophilia was not a matter of concern to Goans. That the paedophiles were foreigners. And the victims were the Lamanis' and oher migrant parents' children. Even as the Chief Minister was washing his hands of the whole expose and blaming everyone except his own administration came the revelation that a senior teacher of the L D Samant Memorial School run by the Vidya Prabodhini had allegedly molested a 12-year-old girl. Any person with any sensitivity would have been agonised over the fact that a school and that too a school which claimed to be committed to value education should have betrayed the trust of the parents. But of course in Parrikar Raj the RSS can do any wrong. So much so the Chief Minister aided and abetted the Vidya Prabodhini in pressurising the parents of the victim not to pursue the matter. The school itself instead of taking prompt action against the alleged molester began a campaign to discredit the parents. In violation of all norms the school even went to the extent of naming the child. As if Goa’s cup of woe was not full it brimmed over with reports of another molestation. This time within the premises of the Don Bosco’s school in Panjim. A student who had gone to the changing rooms to change into his NCC uniform after school hours was reportedly accosted by a local or migrant paedophile who forced him to commit some indecent acts. Regrettably, the school management has yet to make a public statement on the ugly incident and why it does not have enough security in place to protect students from paedophiles. Even after the incident happened security continues to be lax as we discovered when we walked into the school without any one stopping us earlier in the week. The paedophile is not some demonic figure. The paedophile as profiled by a leading authority in the field is often a close family of the family or even a relative of the victim. Sources in the Goa Medical College tell me that incidents of paedophilia which pass off as incest are not uncommon in Goa. Just a couple of months ago a 13-year-old was brought to the GMC in a very disturbed condition. When doctors coaxed him into talking he tearfully admitted that he had been sodomised by a close relative. There are paedophiles lurking all around and the benign uncle who showers the children with gifts might be a paedophile. Victims of paedophiles often end up traumatised for life. There are any number of case studies which dramatise how devastating sexual molestation can be for children. It is obvious that we cannot rely upon the government or the police to do anything about paedophilia whether it is of the imported kind or the home grown variety. And apparently our schools which are a second home to children do not seem to be concerned about protecting their students from paedophiles. Which puts the onus of responsibility on parents. Most parents do routinely tell their children not to accept gifts from strangers. They also warn children against straying of on their own and letting strangers or even those known to them touch them in forbidden places. We have to acknowledge and accept the fact that there are paedophiles in our midst. That these sick people can be a major threat to our children. And we need to reinforce a sense of caution in our children. And try to the extent possible not to leave children unescorted in public places. We are most agonised by the reaction of the police. We are being given to understand that the new Director General of Police is particularly sensitive to any crimes against children. Amod Kant is reported to have worked closely with an NGO committed to children’s welfare in Delhi. We are therefore all the more pained that he has toed the Chief Minister’s line and sought to minimise the menace of paedophilia. Is it a case of crawling when merely asked to bend. MOG ASSUM RAJAN NARAYAN
|
||
