Calling the incident a result of “systemic failure”, a group of Indian-origin doctors in an open letter to the chief minister said that there has been an “alarming” rise in physical violence against doctors in the state’s hospitals.
“What occurred at RG Kar is a ‘Never Event’—a tragedy so severe that it must never be repeated,” read the letter signed by doctors hailing from the United Kingdom, the USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and the Gulf countries.
The doctors urged the state government to not only provide justice to the family of the junior doctor but also to take “decisive measures to safeguard the dignity and safety of women in the profession across West Bengal”.
Samhati Mondal, Associate Professor, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA, said: “The global medical community is ashamed and disappointed by the attack on the peaceful protesters at RG Kar hospital on the night of August 14. This act and simultaneously inaction of police… are highly condemnable.”
Amitava Sur, consultant neonatologist at Lancashire, said: “Swift fair justice is imperative to bring closure to the family. But equally important is to make tectonic changes to how the hospitals run to provide secure safe resting rooms and toilets for doctors with proper CCTV and security cameras covering all areas.”
The letter, co-signed by alumni of West Bengal’s most renowned medical institutions, called for a multifaceted response from the government, including the installation of adequate security personnel, functioning CCTV surveillance, and the creation of safe and protected areas for medical professionals during night shifts.
Meanwhile, protests are being organised in different parts of the world, including in Manchester in the United Kingdom. A candlelight vigil will be organised in London, Manchester, and Birmingham on August 22.
On the night of August 14, a group of 70 people gathered on the banks of Delaware river in Philadelphia, the US, to voice their support to the ongoing protests in West Bengal and across India over the RG Kar rape and murder incident.
“The horrific details of the rape and murder of a junior doctor at a Kolkata hospital have deeply shaken us. The systemic failure to ensure basic safety and uphold human dignity is both alarming and unacceptable. It is a stark reminder that the right of every woman to feel safe and prompt action for justice in case of heinous crimes against them must be safeguarded and institutionalized,” the organisers of the protest said. They demanded establishment of a specialised unit for handling of such cases, laws for ensuring secure, safe working areas for doctors and gender sensitization in education.
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