A Question We Still Refuse to Answer | Women’s Safety | Save Girls

I am seething with anger, feeling helpless, and losing all hope. What is happening around us? Crimes against women continue with a disturbing regularity. Whether it is college campuses, terraces, hospital restrooms, homes, offices, streets, or public places, girls are not safe anywhere, not even those who are considered privileged. This reality is difficult to accept and harder to ignore.

After every incident, the pattern repeats itself. There are protests, social media outrage, candlelight marches, and sharp exchanges between political parties. Then, slowly, everything fades. The same voices that demand accountability today fall silent tomorrow. The opposition blames the government, yet when roles reverse, the outcome remains unchanged. It has reached a point where women can no longer claim safety in any space.

Time moves on, governments change, and yet justice often feels delayed or incomplete. Perpetrators walk free after a few years, and the urgency that once surrounded the crime disappears from public memory. What remains, though, is the trauma. What remains is the loss of a life that cannot be restored. At what point do we decide that enough truly is enough?

The Cycle That Never Ends

There is a pressing need for deterrence. When brutality reaches such extreme levels, the response must reflect the seriousness of the crime. No attacker should be allowed to walk free after committing such acts. The harshest punishment permitted by law must be enforced without hesitation. Without this, fear of consequences will never take root.

A crime of such magnitude should not be treated as an isolated act. It should be seen for what it is, an act that spreads fear and insecurity across society. Those responsible must be tried and brought to justice with the same seriousness reserved for the gravest offenses against the nation.

If initiatives meant to protect and empower girls are to succeed, then safety must come first. Real change will begin only when justice is swift, trials are not delayed, and punishments are strong enough to leave a lasting impact.

Justice Delayed, Fear Unchecked

It is difficult to understand the mindset behind such acts. What leads someone to believe they can harm, terrorise, and destroy lives without consequence? What gives them the confidence that they might escape accountability after a few years? These are questions that remain unanswered, even as incidents continue.

There is an urgent need for clear and effective action. Government bodies, law enforcement, and all responsible authorities must move beyond statements and develop a concrete approach to ensure the safety of women.

This piece is also a tribute to the girls who lost their lives to someone else’s greed, lust, anger, or cruelty. Their absence is not just a statistic. It is a reminder of what has been taken away.

Girls are not the handmaidens of boys or of any patriarchal system. Basic respect should not be a demand; it should be a given. And if that cannot be offered, then the least that can be done is to leave them alone.

In Conclusion

For how long will women continue to bear the burden of being victims of countless crimes: physical violence, dowry deaths, celebratory firing at marriages, harassment at workplaces, one-sided love crimes, horror killings, and the many restrictions imposed in the name of tradition or belief?

At what point do we stop asking why and start refusing to accept this as normal?