CHENNAI: President of World Society of Victimology (WSV) Marc Groenhuijsen, on Thursday stressed the importance of victim privacy and protection of victims of crime.Delivering the VR Krishna Iyer Endowment Lecture organised by the Madras University department of criminology, he said in most cases victims were blamed, especially in sexual offences. This attitude should change.
Speaking on ‘Changing Victimology in a Volatile Environment’ he said, “Nearly one billion people are victimised annually if we measure the incidence. The impact on these victims is more than anticipated. However, the evolving questions would be how far does the State provide security for victims to minimise the adverse effects of crime ( prevention of secondary victimsation- by blaming the victim) and should victim rights be considered as human rights and how fast do these victims get justice,” he said.
He further explained that immaterial of the case, victims have to be respected and treated as human beings , but debates are still on if their rights should be treated as human rights.However, this depends on the needs of the victims. But, the main aim is that their access to justice should be faster. He also highlighted that only less than one per cent of rape cases end in conviction and “we are made to believe this as justice. But, after various debates and policy changes many countries across the globe have adopted stringent rules.”
Amaresh Pujari, ADGP, State Traffic Planning Cell, said a victim’s need is speedy trial. There should be no harassment while seeking justice and their identities should be protected. “Victims should be recognised in the system and they should be made aware of their compensation,” he said.