No justice for handicapped girl raped in Ye Township

November 17, 2015

WCRP: In July 2015 a 23-year-old handicapped girl was raped by a 40-year-old man in Jone Lang village, Ye Township. While the case has been reported to local authorities, no justice has yet been seen for the victim.

In July the handicapped girl, Mi ——, went to a farm at around 1 pm to pick durian, without informing her parents. She was followed by the perpetrator, U Sein Win, a married man with two children. When they arrived at the farm, he covered her mouth and raped her, threatening her with a knife.

Mi—– had already been raped twice before. At the age of 16 she was raped by a soldier from battalion No. 591 in a nearby forest. In the second case, just last year, the brother of a government worker raped her in her own home. During both previous incidents her parents, who earn a living as daily workers, were away at work. In previous cases the perpetrators were punished and some compensation was offered.

Ten days after the latest incident, Mi—– told her parents what had happened. She explained, “I told him that I’d tell my parents if he raped me, but he said if I told anyone he’d kill me. After he raped me, he cleaned some dirt from my head, and told me to hide in the forest, worried that other people would see me”.

The girl’s parents reported the latest assault to the village administrator, who called on U Sein Win to give his side of the story. U Sein Win denied the rape charge, claiming that he was just asking the girl about picking durian.

Although the case was transferred to the New Mon State Party’s Wal Zin office, Mi—’s mother complained that the authorities didn’t investigate the case, saying, “We reported my daughter’s case at the Wal Zin office two months ago, but I have heard nothing from them”.

She added, “I want the authorities to investigate the case quickly and get to the truth. My daughter is handicapped, and if the authorities don’t do anything, I fear for her security in the future. I just want her to be safe. They should punish the man responsible for his crime. We don’t need compensation; we just want security for our daughter. We have to work daily for our food and can’t look after her all the time”.


 

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