While his wife and others want no mercy to be shown to French diplomat, Pascal Mezurier, accused of raping his three-and-a-half year old daughter, the little girl herself, tucked in the arms of her mother, cries for her father whom she loves. “I love my papa; he hurts me,” cries the traumatised child.

“She is clearly confused. Although physically and emotionally hurt, she is too young and ignorant to understand that what her papa, the person she loves and trusts the most, did was wrong. It could affect her later if she is not counselled properly,” warns Dr Jagadeesh, a forensic medicine expert and promoter of Collaborative Child Response units in hospitals, an initiative of Unicef and the Department of Women and Child Development, to care for sexually abused children.

Mezurier reportedly got away with his alleged horrendous, incestuous crime because the family felt he was a hands-on dad, would play with the children and laugh with them. His 37-year-old wife , Suja Jones, has reportedly said in the police complaint that she trusted him and believed he was a caring father. But while public attention is centred around the alleged abuser and the need to bring him to justice, its equally important to remember the needs of the child, who has suffered his assault, say counsellors.

“Victims of child sexual abuse if not counselled properly often grow up to believe that they invited the sexual abuse and deserve to be in abusive relationships for the rest of their lives,” says Dr Shaibya Saldanha, resource faculty for training under he Integrated Child Protection Scheme in Karnataka of the Unicef and DWCD. “The traumagenic dynamics model of child sexual abuse developed by Finkelhor & Browne (1985) explains the impact of childhood sexual abuse : how when children come to know of their sexuality in an inappropriate and dysfunctional manner; they begin to suffer feelings of worthlessness, shame and guilt,” she points out, adding that the betrayal by someone they trust and depend upon and the powerlessness they feel in the situation can have a devastating effect too.

Activists question the delay in arrest
The fact that French diplomat, Pascal Mezurier, is still free although four days have passed since his alleged rape of his three- and- a half- year old daughter came to light, has enraged city human rights activists.

“Diplomatic immunity cannot be a protection in such a heinous crime. There should have been no delay in arresting him. The state government and the police are unnecessarily delaying discharging their duties. Immunity cannot be a reason to allow an alleged rapist to walk free," says Mr Mathew Philip, executive director, South India Cell for Human Rights Education and Monitoring (SICHREM).

“We've had a talk with the ministry of external affairs and consulted four experts in Delhi, and it is clear that Pascal Mezurier does not enjoy diplomatic immunity. I really don't understand why the state government is taking so long in acting against him,” says Ms Pramila Nesargi, a senior advocate, and counsel for the complainant.

Activists are also upset that while Mezurier has not been arrested, the child was sent for yet another medical examination to Bowring and Lady Curzon Hospital. “Despite the vaginal and anal swab the child underwent at Baptist Hospital and the detection of sperm, she had to undergo yet another test at Bowring Hospital which was not required. This is a serious violation of her rights. Only if the doctor who conducted the first test was not sure about his findings, should she have been referred to another hospital," they argue.

Ms Nesargi too finds it hard to understand why the child had to undergo a second test when the swab test report of Baptist Hospital clearly said she was subjected to sexual abuse. “Baptist Hospital and MS Ramaiah Hospital are the only two competent hospitals in the city with a proper child protection unit and trained doctors and staff to handle child rape cases," she points out .