Delhi gang-rape victim dies in Singapore hospital

Delhi gang-rape victim dies in Singapore hospital Get short URL email story to a friendprint version Published: 29 December, 2012, 02:12 TAGS: Crime, Scandal, Law, India People wait at the Mount Elizabeth hospital in Singapore, on December 29, 2012 (AFP Photo / Roslan Rahman) The female victim of a brutal gang-rape on a Delhi bus has died in a Singapore hospital. Her assault sparked massive demonstrations against sexual violence across India. The 23-year old student “died peacefully” early on Saturday, said a statement by Singapore's Mount Elizabeth hospital, where she was treated for multiple internal injuries. "We are very sad to report that the patient passed away peacefully at 4.45 am (local time) on 29 Dec 2012," Kelvin Loh, the hospital’s chief executive said. "Her family and officials from the High Commission of India were by her side. The Mount Elizabeth Hospital team of doctors, nurses and staff join her family in mourning her loss." Loh said the woman had remained in an extremely critical condition since Thursday when she was flown to Singapore from India. "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 young women and her male companion were attacked on a public bus on December 16 by six men who raped her and brutally beat them both. They also inserted an iron rod into her body causing severe organ damage. Both were then stripped and thrown off the bus. The horrendous incident in the Indian capital sparked violent weeklong demonstrations, with protesters demanding greater security for women and urging the death penalty for the suspects. The death of the Delhi rape victim comes after another victim of sexual assault in India committed suicide after police and suspects from an influential cast pressured her to drop the case. The teenage girl was found dead Wednesday night after swallowing poison. She was assaulted during the festival of Diwali on November 13 in the Patiala region, Punjab, according to officials. ========================================================= Body of India rape victim arrives home in New Delhi Sun, Dec 30 05:43 AM EST 1 of 26 By Adnan Abidi and Devidutta Tripathy NEW DELHI (Reuters) - The body of a woman whose gang rape provoked protests and rare national debate about violence against women in India arrived back in New Delhi early on Sunday and was quickly cremated at a private ceremony. The unidentified 23-year-old medical student died from her injuries on Saturday, prompting promises of action from a government that has struggled to respond to public outrage. She had suffered brain injuries and massive internal injuries in the attack on December 16, and died in hospital in Singapore where she had been taken for treatment. She and a male friend had been returning home from the cinema, media reports say, when six men on a bus beat them with metal rods and repeatedly raped the woman. The friend survived. Six suspects were charged with murder after her death. A Reuters correspondent saw family members who had been with her in Singapore take her body from the airport to their Delhi home in an ambulance with a police escort. Ruling party leader Sonia Gandhi was seen arriving at the airport when the plane landed and Prime Minister Mannmohan Singh's convoy was also there, the witness said. The body was then taken to a crematorium and cremated. Media were kept away but a Reuters witness saw the woman's family, New Delhi's chief minister, Sheila Dikshit, and the junior home minister, R P N Singh, coming out of the crematorium. Security in the capital remained tight after authorities, worried about the reaction to the news of her death, had on Saturday deployed thousands of policemen and closed some roads and metro stations. Protesters still gathered, in New Delhi and other cities, to keep the pressure on Singh's government to get tougher on crime against women. Last weekend, protesters fought pitched battles with police. On Sunday, lines of policemen in riot gear and armed with heavy wooden sticks stood in front of metal barricades closing off roads in New Delhi. Morning traffic was light. DOUBTS The outcry over the attack caught the government off-guard. It took a week for Singh to make a statement, infuriating many protesters. Issues such as rape, dowry-related deaths and female infanticide rarely enter mainstream political discourse in India. Analysts say the death of the woman dubbed "Amanat", an Urdu word meaning "treasure", by some Indian media could change that, although it is too early to say whether the protesters calling for government action to better safeguard women can sustain their momentum through to national elections due in 2014. Newspapers raised doubts about the commitment of both male politicians and the police to protecting women. "Would the Indian political system and class have been so indifferent to the problem of sexual violence if half or even one-third of all legislators were women?" the Hindu newspaper asked. The Indian Express acknowledged the police force was understaffed and poorly paid, but there was more to it than that. "It is geared towards dominating citizens rather than working for them, not to mention being open to influential interests," the newspaper said. "It reflects the misogyny around us, rather than actively fighting for the rights of citizens who happen to be female." Most sex crimes in India go unreported, many offenders go unpunished, and the wheels of justice turn slowly, according to social activists, who say that successive governments have done little to ensure the safety of women. Commentators and sociologists say the rape has tapped into a deep well of frustration many Indians feel over what they see as weak governance and poor leadership on social issues. New Delhi has the highest number of sex crimes among India's major cities, with a rape reported on average every 18 hours, according to police figures. Government data show the number of reported rape cases in India rose by nearly 17 percent between 2007 and 2011. For a link to the poll, click http://www.trust.org/trustlaw/news/special-coverage/g20women/ (Additional reporting by Ross Colvin and Diksha Madhok; Writing by Louise Ireland; Editing by Kevin Liffey and Robert Birsel)