Dangerous trend of mob �justice�
The temptation to take the law into one�s own hand is much greater when people believe they can get away with crime
Syed Mehdi Momin
About a week or so back a group of 13 men allegedly tied up and thrashed two teenage boys in Rajshahi district, accusing them of stealing a mobile phone, and allegedly recorded the entire incident on video. Among the accused are an Army sergeant and a police constable. Wile the incident was indeed deplorable the boys we lucky in a way. They were beaten to a pulp but they at leas did not die. Many others are not so fortunate. Last week on Tuesday a young man was beaten to death by a mob in Paba Upazila, Rajshahi alleging him of theft. On the same day in Narshingdi another young man was similarly lynched by a mobthis time he was alleged to be a member of a dacoit gang. It seems to be a literal interpretation of giving a dog a bad name and then killing it. Only, instead of dogs man beings are being killed on the basis of allegations.
According to a recent study carried out by the human rights watchdog Adhikaras many as 132 people were killed in lynch-mob attacks in 2015. And dozens others were killed in what many believe to be fake encounters, crossfire or gun battles.
The victims of mob madness in most cases drew the wrath of the mob on mere suspicion of being purse snatchers, robbers or terrorists. As it happens in such cases, reason and rationality take a back seat. The blood-thirsty mob falls on the victims with such vehemence that they find no scope to say anything in their self-defence. Such tragedies are happening day in, day out in different parts of the country.
This unwelcome phenomenon is growing and may gradually turn our country into a state of lawlessness. I have watched and read how oftentimes suspected criminals are bruised and tortured to death by an irate mob that feels the suspected criminal deserves the harshest punishment.
Last year the killing of a 13 year old boy -most probably falsely- accused of trying to steal a rickshaw shocked the nation and launched protests across Bangladesh. The group of men who attacked Samiul Alam Rajon filmed their sickening assault and posted it on social media, where it went viral in the country.
The video shows the men brutally beating and torturing the boy as he begs for his life, laughing and taunting him as he screams and cries. Stills from the 28-minute video, which are still circulating in local media, show a terrified Rajon cringing, at times tied to a fence. At one point, the attackers apparently tell him to walk away. When he tries, another shouts: His bones are OK. Beat him some more. An autopsy found 64 serious injuries on the boys body, which was disposed in a nearby dump after the beating. I am not sure whether we have any correct statistics on how many cases of such killings have taken place since our independence. In all probability, we will never know how many innocent people had to die in this manner. And such deaths will never stop until and unless the law-enforcing agencies steps in to ensure that mobs are under no circumstances able to take law into their own hands and commit such barbarity.
Unfortunately rarely do the onlookers or the common people in general care to show any sympathy for such victims.
We know that more often than not the police prefer to look away when such violence takes place in their presence. What holds the police back from preventing the ghastly incidents is anybodys guess. The story of the polices non-committal role does not end here. There are instances when the police tried to dismiss such brutal incidents as the spontaneous outburst of the peoples wrath on the criminals. Put differently, does that mean to say that whatever the mob has done to establish its own style of justice is nothing very serious to worry about? In that case, what is then the need for maintaining the law-enforcement department under the state, if the mob has the freedom to take care of the law?
The question is does anything justify people taking the law into their hands and killing people? While we cannot support lynching under any circumstances we also have to try and understand why people felt it necessary to capture alleged criminals and dispense their form of instant justice. In many cases they have a choice before them and instead of reporting to the police they chose to sort the matter out themselves. Quite clearly trust in the law enforcers is dismally low and the trend of vigilante justice is becoming increasing common.
There is an urgent need on part of the law enforcers to pull up their socks so that trust on them is ensured. However for that to happen institutional reforms are necessary and political pressure on these forces must come to an end. It is also the responsibility of the leaders of the society to educate the people about the fact that the rule of law is sacrosanct and vigilante justice is no justice at all.
Increasingly we are observing a rise in the number of people who have little or no respect for the law, or tolerance for the rights of those with differing points of view. While most of us are always talking about our rights we tend to forget about our responsibilities. From constantly laying claims to our legitimate rights as citizens, we need to evolve to an understanding of our role as public citizens with concomitant behaviour to support that privilege. It is useful to remember that in ancient Athens direct democracy, major governance decisions were made by the citizens all of who were eligible to participate in the Assembly, which debated all public issues, often at great length, before making final decisions. Citizens who go around beating a bus driver to death or slapping a small tea shop attendant arent particularly qualified to make decisions.
Day in and day out there are protests blocking highways and disrupting other essential services. Hospitals are vandalised for any death, blaming it on the doctors negligence. Today, our behaviour in public is not open to question since the public space concerns no one. It is the platform on which the macabre dance of irresponsible behaviour is repeatedly played out. Thus, vandalizing public property is a time-honoured tradition in this country and a regular part of any protest movement.
Vigilantes as we know are groups of people, who in their own perception, believe that the law enforcement machinery expected to correct certain wrongs, is not delivering adequately well; hence they rope in a totally illegal and unacceptable instrumentality, by taking law into their hands, and seeking to redress their grievances, mostly through violent means. Vigilantes obviously are not native only to Bangladesh. Almost all over the world vigilante groups have existed, even in the most developed nations. United States of America witnessed vigilantism in the post-restoration period. The problem with vigilantes is that they do not look into the eyes of a felon and see past the crime. They do not scrutinise the way a judicial system would. In a courtroom, an accused has his/her entire life - beginning from infancy - inspected by the jury before a verdict a reached.
Anyone who has read Lord of the Flies is familiar with the concept that the institution of civilisation is the only wall between humans and savagery. The absence of justice brought out the monsters of revenge in us - and I do not just mean the vigilantes. This includes every person who remained quiet for years and years while lives were shed in the hands of mobs. It may just be time to prove that people can recognise a wrong for what it is.
As stated earlier vigilantism is usually associated with a loss of faith in the criminal justice system, yet at the same time, the temptation to take the law into ones own hand is much greater when people believe they can get away by playing vigilantes. This is why it is extremely important for the authorities to take a hard line on all kinds of violent vigilantism, paying particular attention to those cases where the punishment meted out is bloody and harsh.
It is difficult to believe that all those who engage in mob justice are ignorant of the law and the fundamental human rights. One does not need to be a legal expert to know that a person is deemed innocent until he/she is proven guilty and that everyone has a right to defend themselves in a court of law. I am in not saying people should steal, kill and be let scot free, no. All I am saying is that we should let institutions and public bodies entrusted with the task of dispensing justice to perform it accordingly. Yes the wheels of justice grind slowly, but they surely do get to their destination. Remember, two wrongs dont make a right.
Bangladesh, we world like to believe is a democracy country founded and established on the rule of law and the principles of human dignity and the advancement of human rights and freedoms.
There is a reason why laws exist in our society. Mob justice can take care of one or two cases at best but effective legal action on the other hand can help in questioning and changing the unequal distribution of power in our society. Historically speaking, mob mentality has been known to spread havoc rather than bring a positive change in society. Public disgrace and shaming of people who are termed as offenders is not only outside of the social and legal sanction ,it also fuels an anarchist and regressive mindset. During a mob formation, there is absolutely no regulation of unruly behavior of each participant and this can lead to extreme miscommunication between them.
The exact details of whatever is happening around the mob participants can be very unclear due to the unchecked rage and sentiments. This can lead to huge injustices and unnecessary assaults on innocent people. While it is true that rage and anger is useful in initiating important revolutions, it needs to be in adequate doses which can be channelized in positive ways. Vigilantism is often the handiwork of an unthinking and angry mob, which fails to understand that the revenge it extracts is not just unlawful but is more often than not also grossly disproportionate to the crime. In the long run, there are a host of social factors that need to be addressed in order to reduce vigilantism and restore public faith in the criminal justice system. At the immediate level, however, it is important to see the phenomenon for what it is a criminal activity and put it down firmly.
The writer is Assistant Editor of The Independent and can be contacted at: [email protected]
