Bangladesh govt moves after girl burned alive

BANGLADESH has ordered about 27,000 schools to set up committees to prevent sexual violence, an official said yesterday, after a teenager who accused a teacher of sexual harassment was burned to death.

The killing of 19-year-old Nusrat Jahan Rafi has sparked outrage across the South Asian nation of 165 million people and put police action in the case under the spotlight.

Protesters in the capital Dhaka staged demonstrations for an 11th day yesterday, seeking “exemplary punishment” for the killers of the girl.

Police say she was lured to the rooftop of the Islamic seminary she attended in Feni, south of the capital, where her attackers ordered her to withdraw a police complaint against the head of the school.

When she refused, she was doused in kerosene and set on fire.

Rafi died in hospital on April 10 after suffering 80 percent burns. At least 20 people, including the head teacher, have been arrested.

Activists say the murder has exposed a “culture of impunity” surrounding sex crimes against women and children, and the fact that those who report harassment often suffer a backlash.

Amid nationwide protests, the Bangladesh government has ordered more than 27,000 schools and colleges to form five-member committee to prevent sexual violence, an official said.

“The committee will be led by female teachers. They will take steps to prevent sexual harassment and take up any complaints,” the director of the Directorate of Secondary and Higher Education, Shahedul Khabir Chowdhury, said.

He said the committees were being formed by an order from the country’s high court, which in 2009 laid down a set of guidelines to prevent sexual harassment of women and children at workplaces, schools and on the streets.

Rafi went to police in late March to report the harassment and a leaked video shows the local station chief registering her complaint but dismissing it as “not a big deal.”

Police said at least five of those under arrest, including three of Rafi’s classmates, tied her up with a scarf before setting her on fire. They had planned to pass off the death as a suicide.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has vowed that all those involved will face action. Police say they are investigating why more was not done to protect Rafi.

(AFP)