Man’s depravity knows no bounds. Its looks like it for sure. An underage girl allegedly raped by a prominent restaurant owner’s son over a period of time is the latest episode to shock the state. There has been a gradual but perceptible change in the social landscape over the past ten years. Recently that change has gathered pace due to the emergence and popularity of digital media. Once what was considered risqué is now blasé to another generation. The rules and regulations have changed.
Recently a rave party at Arpora which ended in fights between groups of young boys all supposedly connected and rich is another example of the kind of behaviour which does not raise an eyebrow amongst the youth. An educationist in a prominent school in Panjim who has witnessed a change in the behaviour of her students over the years said there were various influences that were playing an important role in a young person’s life. Speaking on condition of anonymity she said peer pressure was very big now and most of the times parents seemed very hassled about the fact their children were going astray but were sometimes not doing anything. She said “Internet, social media, the values at home combine to make this kind of behaviour. Children have to see their parents behave in a positive light; it is about building capacities of the individuals to fight wrong. The individual has to be strong to resist temptation. All these things one learns and evolves as one grows. Otherwise, the outcome can be tragic for everyone”.
Dr Nandita de Souza of Setu said one had to be very careful with children with a mental or physical disability. She said “Even if the person says yes and is under 18, it is considered rape. They are very vulnerable”.
Aditi Tendulkar, Physiotherapist based in Vasco said it had a lot to do with parenting. She said “ At birth, the child is like a blind slate. Then the parents, society all make him or her what he or she becomes. If they make the child feel he or she is untouchable then they will absorb it into their value system. Parenting should be done in a way without compromising on morals”. Behaviours she said were modelled by parents, company one kept and the environment. If the child got away with something with everyone around helping them to get away with it then this would become part of his or her personality. This desire to do anything thinking they could get away with it.
An educationist who has never waved from giving her views on various issues troubling the state, Smitha Bhandare Kamat was on point when she said “ I think this sense of entitlement is experienced everywhere at every level only the intensity varies. Thanks to the fact that ‘ Mai-Baap’ or Godfathers are just a call away. Secondly, we as a society have absorbed the new culture, where ‘ I, me, myself’ is the priority”
Another lady who had a lot to say about the situation was Meenakshi Martins how felt that sexual offences and other acts against law of the land by the were now coming to the fore more than before. She said “ I cannot put the blame on any particular agency as such, be it the parenting norms or the educational system. There are various other agencies that are at work, at any given time. Behavioural anomalies are fairly rampant. Norms, morality and values in the society are changing all the time. The paradigm shift as to what is normal or moral is fluid. What was wrong at a time in history is now legal. Youth have no deterrent and act in a nonchalant way, as was seen during the recent events in Goa”.
Perhaps one day we shall look back and say this was the time when it all started going really bad.
