Loss of humanity

Two horrific incidents occurred recently close on the heels of each other and both filled our hearts with sadness and made us cry out in anger.

In the first one Adam Lanza (aged 20) waged fire on 14 December, 2012 at the Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut, US killing twenty first-graders who were only 6-7 years old. Adam shot some of his innocent victims multiple times. The school's Principal, its Psychologist and teachers who tried to come in the way to shield the students were not spared and in all six adults lost their lives. After the mass shooting Adam committed suicide by his own weapon. Prior to going to the school he had also killed his mother at home.

Two days later on 16 December, a young woman got inside a bus with her friend at 9.30 pm in New Delhi, India. Unknown to them the bus had onboard five other men who were friends of the driver. They brutally beat the male companion with an iron rod. Next they gang raped the girl and also used the same rod for violently penetrating her. All this while the bus moved through the lanes of Delhi passing unchecked by even police barricades because of the tinted windows and shut door. Once done with their deed the men threw out the two victims on the road. The victims were later found by a passerby and taken to the hospital. On gaining consciousness the girl gave her statement and asked for the culprits to be brought to justice. While her will to live was strong, her body gave up. The iron rod had done such bad damage that her intestines had to be removed. In a heavily criticised move on part of the Indian government, she was flown to Singapore for further treatment. But it proved futile as she died on 29 December, 2012.

The aftermath of the Sandy Hook Shooting had people demanding stronger gun control in US. An article in The Guardian published in July 2012 using the data from the Small Arms Survey 2007 ranks US number 1 in the world for civil gun ownership with a total 270, 000, 000 civil firearms and averaging a massive 88.8 firearms for every 100 people. 60% of the homicides that year were caused by firearms. These alarming figures are screaming the need to reduce the accessibility of guns which Adam Lanza clearly had. At the school premises the police recovered 3 firearms and a fourth one stashed in the shooter's car. In addition there were three more firearms found in his home.

A widely known secret is that election campaigns in US have large contributions flowing from the likes of National Rifle Association (NRA). The indebted elected representatives find themselves duty bound to a different set of people and therefore, skirt this important issue.

The Delhi gang rape has caused a widespread outrage in India. Men and women from all over the country belonging to different strata of lives came together in support of the victim and to protest against the system. The bravery that the girl showed in spite of the terrible torture meted out to her has shook everyone up. The Indian government has been forced to take a deeper look into its anti-rape law and a committee has been set up in this regard.

At this very moment various parts of our world are in a stage of unrest. Severe atrocities are being carried out in the name of war. Homes are being looted and the elderly killed. Unaffected by the current public debates kids are getting attracted to guns and in villages and cities alike girls are still being raped.

I often wonder what happens to people that they are led to commit heinous crimes. Are a bad childhood, a mental illness, poverty and lack of education good enough reasons to justify the perpetrators' turning out badly? What about their conscience - where does it disappear in those moments? How can somebody's gruesome torture give them pleasure? Can vengeance ever lead to peace?

As a silent audience we are also culpable. We have cushioned ourselves so well that we have forgotten how it is to feel. We need our hearts to pump more and must improve our memories so that what is news today does not fade away tomorrow. We can either continue to be cynical or choose to roll up ours sleeves and pull up our socks. If changes for the better are to be brought about then the masses need to shoulder their fare share of responsibility along with those holding positions of authority. Otherwise this sorry state of affairs shall continue with each such tragic story representing a piece of humanity lost.


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