LEGISLATION ON ACID VIOLENCE AROUND THE WORLD

  

No country in the world is untouched by the acid attacks. From developed nations like United States of America, United Kingdom to the developing nations like India, Bangladesh etc, acid attacks are ubiquitous. Though the majority of attacks happen in the continent of Asia and Africa. As the acid attacks cases rose in number over the years, the countries over the world felt the need to frame stringent laws to curb such type of violence. The legislations on acid violence in the countries where the most number of such attacks occur are

BANGLADESH

 Bangladesh reports the highest number of acid attacks in the world. There was a sudden increase in number of acid attack cases in Bangladesh in the mid 1990s. In 2001, 340 cases were reported which got to 336 cases in 2002. The government passed The Acid Offences Prevention Act and The Acid Control Act in 2002 to check the increasing acid violence in the country. The Act24 punishes the culprit with a death sentence or rigorous punishment for life with the fine of one lakh Takka in case of death25 or complete or partial mutilation of face or sexual organ of the victim. On damage to any part of the body of the victim, rigorous imprisonment of 7-14 years is awarded to the perpetrator.26 In addition to this, anyone who throws or attempts to throw acid on any person is rigorously imprisoned for 3-7 years along with a fine of 50,000 Takka even if no physical or mental harm is caused.27 The Act also addresses the problem of delay of prosecution of cases by allotting fixed time for investigations. It provides a maximum of 60 days for investigation, failing which legal 24 Acid Offences Prevention Act, 2002. 25 S. 4, Acid Offences Prevention Act, 2002. 26 S. 5, Acid Offences Prevention Act, 2002. 27 S. 6, Acid Offences Prevention Act, 2002. action is taken against the investigating officer. It also states that the trial of the case should be completed within a maximum of 90 days. The Acid Control Act, deals with restricting and controlling the sale and supply of acid in Bangladesh. A 15- member National Acid Control Councils have been established around the country to take action to enforce the laws regarding acid sales and to assist in proper treatment, reporting and rehabilitation of victims.

CAMBODIA

 Earlier, there was no criminal law to punish the perpetrators of acid violence. They were charged with battery with injury, carrying a sentence of up to ten years imprisonment. In January 2012, Acid Law came into force which criminalized the acid violence. It prosecutes the perpetrator with15-30 years of imprisonment in case of death of the victim and 15-25 years in case of permanent disability of the victim. It also lays down that the government should provide the acid victims medical care, legal support and protection.

 UGANDA

 Acid violence in Uganda affects all the social strata of society from the poorest to the most rich and influential. Section 216(g) of Ugandan Penal Code penalizes the perpetrator with life imprisonment. If the attack is made with malice and it leads to the death of the victim, then it is considered as murder under Section 188 and the culprit is awarded with a death sentence under Section 204 of the Ugandan Penal Code. An offence as grave as acid attack is non- bailable in nature but the culprits are still released on bail.Though there are effective laws present in the country against such violence but they are not implemented in an apt manner which is the reason why such attacks still occur in large number in the country. 

JAMAICA 

There is no explicit law in Jamaica to deal with acid violence in spite of the fact that it has the largest number of absolute acid attack victims. The only piece of legislation which punishes such violence is Offences Against the Person Act which awards life imprisonment to the convict in case of causing grievous injury to the victim

PAKISTAN 

Pakistan passed the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2010 which amended the penal code of the country to add section 326A and 326B which provides for life imprisonment or a minimum of fourteen years of imprisonment with a huge fine of one million rupees to anyone who causes grievous hurt to any person via acid. The Acid Throwing and Burn Crime Bill, 2012 expands upon the Acid Control and Acid Crime Prevention (Amendment) Act, 2010. It provided a proper and specific definition for acid attack and also provided for investigation, protection of witnesses as well as the recognition of medical, legal and financial support for victims and their dependants. The Act also criminalizes an attempt to commit acid violence and imposes an obligation on officers for proper investigation of the attack. To promote effective implementation of law, the act provides the provision for establishment of Acid and Burn Crime Monitoring Board and described its role and responsibilities.