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| FILE - In this Dec. 26, 2012 file photo, Indians participate in a candle light vigil to seek a quick recovery of the young victim of the recent brutal gang-rape in a bus in New Delhi, India. A statement by Singapore’s Mount Elizabeth hospital, where the 23-year-old victim was being treated, said she died Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012. |
SINGAPORE (AP) -- A young Indian woman who was gang-raped and severely beaten on a bus died Saturday at a Singapore hospital, after her horrific ordeal galvanized Indians to demand greater protection for women from sexual violence that impacts thousands of them every day.
She
"passed away peacefully" with her family and officials of the Indian
Embassy by her side, Dr. Kevin Loh, the chief executive of Mount
Elizabeth hospital, said in a statement.
After
10 days at a hospital in the Indian capital of New Delhi, where the
attack occurred, the victim was brought Thursday to Mount Elizabeth
hospital, which specializes in multi-organ transplant. Loh said the
woman had remained in extremely critical condition since Thursday, and
by late Friday her condition had taken a turn for the worse and her
vital signs had deteriorated.
"Despite all
efforts by a team of eight specialists in Mount Elizabeth Hospital to
keep her stable, her condition continued to deteriorate over these two
days," Loh said. "She had suffered from severe organ failure following
serious injuries to her body and brain. She was courageous in fighting
for her life for so long against the odds but the trauma to her body was
too severe for her to overcome."
The woman
and a male friend, who have not been identified, were traveling on a bus
in New Delhi after watching a film on the evening of Dec. 16 when they
were attacked by six men who raped her. The men also beat the couple and
inserted an iron rod into the woman's body, resulting in severe organ
damage. Both were then stripped and thrown off the bus, according to
police.
Indian police have arrested six people
in connection with the attack, which left the victim with severe
internal injuries, a lung infection and brain damage. She also suffered
from a heart attack while in the hospital in India.
Indian
High Commissioner, or ambassador, T.C.A. Raghavan told reporters that
the scale of the injuries she suffered was "very grave" and in the end
"proved too much."
He said arrangements were being made to take her body back to India.
The
frightening nature of the crime shocked Indians, who have come out in
the thousands for almost daily demonstrations. Indian television
channels said security had been tightened in New Delhi on Sunday in
anticipation of more protests following the woman's death.
The
protesters are demanding stronger protection for women and the death
penalty for rape, which is now punishable by a maximum of life
imprisonment. Women face daily harassment across India, ranging from
catcalls on the streets, groping and touching in public transport to
rape.
The tragedy has forced India to confront
the reality that sexually assaulted women are often blamed for the
crime, which forces them to keep quiet and not report it to authorities
for fear of exposing their families to ridicule. Also, police often
refuse to accept complaints from those who are courageous enough to
report the rapes, and the rare prosecutions that reach courts drag on
for years.
Indian attitudes toward rape are so
entrenched that even politicians and opinion makers have often
suggested that women should not go out at night or wear clothes that
might be seen provocative.
On Friday, Abhijit
Mukherjee, a national lawmaker and the son of India's president,
apologized for calling the protesters "highly dented and painted" women
who go from discos to demonstrations.
"I tender my unconditional apology to all the people whose sentiments got hurt," he told NDTV news.
Separately,
authorities in Punjab state took action Thursday when an 18-year-old
woman killed herself by drinking poison a month after she told police
she was gang-raped.
State authorities
suspended one police officer and fired two others on accusations they
delayed investigating and taking action in the case. The three accused
in the rape were only arrested Thursday night, a month after the crime
was reported.
"This is a very sensitive crime,
I have taken it very seriously," said Paramjit Singh Gill, a top police
officer in the city of Patiala.
The Press
Trust of India reported that the woman was raped Nov. 13 and reported
the attack to police Nov. 27. But police harassed the girl, asked her
embarrassing questions and took no action against the accused, PTI
reported, citing police sources.
Authorities
in the eastern state of Chhattisgarh also suspended a police officer on
accusations he refused to register a rape complaint from a woman who
said she had been attacked by a driver.
