Secondary victimisation
Also called: Re-traumatisation of victims · Topic: Safeguards for Vulnerable Sections: SCs, STs, OBCs, Minorities, Women and Children · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Secondary victimisation means a victim gets hurt again by the justice process itself, after the crime is over. The hurt can come from police or court officials who are unkind or ask the same questions again and again. It can also come from long trials, or from having to see the accused in the courtroom. It matters most in rape cases and in cases under the POCSO Act 2012, because child victims are easily traumatised (deeply upset in a lasting way). A justice system is called victim-centric (built around the victim's needs) when it tries to reduce this harm.
Example
Under the Fast Track Special Courts scheme, launched on 2 October 2019 for rape and POCSO cases, courts have Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centres and child-friendly court spaces. A deposition centre is a safe room where a child can give evidence without facing the accused. POCSO s.35 adds time limits: the child's evidence must be recorded within 30 days of the court taking up the case, and the trial should end within one year "as far as possible". Both rules stop the child from having to relive the crime over many years.
Don't confuse with
- Primary victimisation: the harm caused by the crime itself, done by the offender. Secondary victimisation is caused afterwards by the system that is supposed to help the victim.
- Hostile witness: a witness who turns against their earlier statement in court. Long delays and fresh trauma can make victims turn hostile, but the two terms mean different things.