Sexual predators and the damage they do

Jan 28, 2018 Features / Columnists, My Column

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Sex is usually the dominant factor in people’s lives, be they heterosexual or homosexual. In days gone by, a homosexual was an object of ridicule and scorn. There were a few who provided humour. Then science came along to state that homosexuals are normal people. They may be aberrations, but normal and more common than people think.
With that revelation came the term ‘coming out’. People came out of the closet in droves. Then came the law that permitted them to get married. Of course there were homosexual weddings long before the United States and Australia legalized such marriages.
I was a little boy, perhaps no more than eight when there was a homosexual wedding reception in Den Amstel. The newspapers made a lot of fuss about it. I remember the name George Pellew. The group set Den Amstel alight.
This past week it was all about sex again, but the people involved were the predators and their victims. Some female gymnasts in the United States came forward and helped send their perverted doctor, Larry Nassar, to jail for life. This thing, according to the gymnasts, had been going on for years but they kept their mouths shut.
But when the bubble burst the outpouring of hate and scorn was enough to blanket the globe. I am not going to attempt to analyse how molestation to this extent could occur because generally, victims of rape and sexual assaults are embarrassed.
At the same time, I could not understand this doctor continuing this abhorrent habit, knowing that most if not all of his victims were not amused, because they could not have been amused. He would have known, because their expressions would have told him.
I watched his gymnasts perform on the world stage and they thrilled the world. Simone Biles, Aly Raisman, Gabby Douglas and so many others—some 150 all told—spoke of the assault. That is a lot of women for one man to assault, but the doctor did. And I am certain that there are more.
Suffice it to say that the judge, in sentencing Nassar, told him that she was giving him a death sentence. She sentenced him to 175 years in jail. She said that she was ensuring that he never walked the streets again.
I thought about the sentence and wondered at the nature of the man who was prepared to risk his life for sex, not that it is unusual. There were men who killed themselves and those who killed others, thus putting their lives away.
Guyana also had its sex predator this past week. Rohan Daniels got two life sentences which will run concurrently. He molested a family member over a period of three years. For his part, he was unrepresented. He is heading to jail where he will be pounced on by prisoners who have a code—one does not molest children.
The story about Daniels is horrifying to say the least. The child was no more than 10 when the molestation started. Today she is damaged. Her relatives were in court to read a statement which told of what she is today, a little girl who has lost her childhood.
On November 27, 2017, a San Antonio newspaper screamed, ‘Convicted child sex offender gets two life sentences, plus 1,000 years in prison’. He molested two young girls.
This obsession with young girls is unbelievable. On October 17, last year, in Guyana one headline read, ‘Corentyne labourer gets life sentence for raping three-year-old’.
On January 8, 2016 there was the situation that caused a newspaper to report, ‘Man jailed for 40 years for sexual activity with 10-yr-old relative’. I suppose there is no end to this kind of activity.
I speak with Ms. Ann Greene, head of the Child Welfare Department, and she tells me some horror stories. The facts in this article do not begin to explain the depths to which child molestation has reached. The fact that many do not reach public view is due to the fact that the child’s parents are too embarrassed to report the incident.
It is not only children who are sexually abused, but they are the most vulnerable. Women are sexually assaulted almost every day, but many say nothing. I remember the case of a Black Bush Polder wife who was sexually assaulted by a relative. She was brave to report the incident and the relative is before the court.
I also remember a murder in South Sophia that stemmed from an assault on a young girl. This man assaulted the girl, was caught, and taken before the courts. After he was released on bail, he went back into the community and assaulted the girl again.
As the saying goes, enough is enough. The community took action. I am not aware of the final chapter in this episode.
I got a call from a woman who has since moved out of the jurisdiction informing me that she wanted some action for the rape of her daughter. There is no statutory limitation on rape, so the matter can be reopened.
The girl is now thirty and has a problem starting relationships to the extent that her mother is worried. The male in this case was the mother’s husband, who is carrying on with his life and refusing to acknowledge that he did something wrong.
The office of the Director of Public Prosecutions is waiting to hear from the complainant who now lives in Barbados, but who would come home to put an end to this chapter in her life.
As a man, I know about the sex urge, but I was also trained to recognize that not every woman is prey. I also learned that when a woman says no, it must be no. A woman must be respected. To destroy a woman is to condemn her to a life of misery. That is why I was one of the few who railed against the paucity of convictions for sex offences.
I saw all too often the victim going to court and telling the judge that she no longer wanted to continue with the matter. I wish there is some way that the court could continue anyhow.
I welcome the sharp jail sentences. I also notice the absence of appeals, although there are appeals for sharp sentences for murder. Some judges have even contended that sharp sentences are unrealistic. I hold the opposing view.

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