PANJIM: The national outrage on crimes against women, especially after the Kathua and Unnao rape cases, led to the Union cabinet on Saturday clearing the death penalty for rape of minors. However, Goa has recorded around 1774 cases of cruelty against women in the last four years.

As per data available with Herald, there have been 1774 cases regarding cruelty against women registered in the last four years, which include rapes, kidnapping, molestation, eve-teasing, cruelty to married women, dowry, dowry deaths, domestic violence, abetment of suicide, indecent representation of women and immoral trafficking.

Statistics reveal that there are 37.74 cases of violence against women every month, which works out to 1.25 a day. 

Shockingly, Goa has seen 322 rape cases in 47 months (January 2014 to November 2017), which means there are nearly seven rape cases (6.87 to be precise) every month in the State.

While there is news of eve-teasing, kidnapping and molestation cases in Uttar Pradesh and Delhi, Goa has seen 739 cases of molestation since 2014. Besides, there have been 275 cases of kidnapping and 198 cases of eve-teasing reported in the State.

What is even more shocking is that in many cases the accused go free for lack of evidence and the cases remain pending for years.  

Though the State government has started fast track courts to dispose cases at the earliest, none are specific to clear cases of crimes against women.

“There are three fast track courts in North Goa District and two fast track courts in South Goa District but none set up specially to dispose cases of rapes, crimes against women and minors,” Law Minister Francis D’Souza said. He said that all other criminal and civil matters, including cases of rapes, crimes against women and minors, are allotted to the general fast track courts in the State.

Auda Viegas of Bailancho Saad says the statistics are just the tip of an iceberg. “This number of 1774 cases and 322 rapes is just a tip of iceberg, there are many cases of atrocities against women which are compromised after counselling,” Viegas told Herald. 

She said that in the matter of rape cases it is a shame that many of them go unreported. “For the honour of the family, the members who should be protective of their child compromise outside courts. What a shame? I mean the honour of the girl is lost and what honour are they talking of the family? The culprit has to be punished,” Viegas said.

State Women’s Commission member Neena Naik feels that children need to be made aware of sexual education rights when they start schooling. “Children have to be taught about the good touch and bad touch, this is where it begins,” she said.

Naik feels that sex education is a part of the curriculum from Class VII but nobody seems to be taking it seriously. “In our society talking about such things is still a taboo but as we are moving forward we have to take these things seriously and girls as well as boys have to be made aware of such things,” she added.