This month, in Australia, a boy stood high above a Melbourne street. He looked down, saw two children in a pram and threw acid – a powerful tile cleaner. The acid hit the children... babies, really. One was 2 and the other was only 5 months old.
The boy who threw the acid is only nine years old. Being under ten years of age, he cannot be charged.
Luckily, the two young children will completely
recover from the attack.
How can this happen in Australia – and how can there
not be public outrage?
I’ve often wondered at the strength of acid attack victims.
I admire their courage and bravery.
Sulphuric acid is the most commonly used acid and is easily found. It’s in car batteries (35% concentration), but, is also available at 98% concentration online.
Kerosene has also been used in acid attacks.
This acid has a disastrous effect on flesh. Skin melts, bones are exposed and often melt. Many victims become blind once the acid hits their eyes. If areas of the nose, throat, ears and mouth are hit by acid, the victim may lose the ability to hear or speak. Attackers usually aim for their victim’s face or genitals. Disfiguration is permanent. While mortality rates are low, victims express extreme agony immediately after an attack and many wish for death in the following months and years.
Imagine walking down the street with a face so terribly scarred that no features remain visible... Victims will generally require 25 to 30 operations as basic treatment for their injuries.
We don’t hear much about these attacks, so I was surprised to read that in Bangladesh, at present there is an acid attack every two days. The most common victims are young women
aged between 14 and 25.
Attacks are often made by husbands. Maybe the woman refused sex, declined a marriage offer, maybe he suspects her of something or is jealous of her. Disputes over land settlements are another common reason for attacks in Pakistan. An example of this is when an aunt fed her one month old nephew acid. By 15 months, he still couldn’t talk – his mouth and chin fused to his chest. In India, acid attacks are used to help people remember their place in the caste system. In Cambodia, attacks are made by wives, seeking revenge on their husband’s lovers. In Afghanistan in 2009, many female students were attacked because they were going to school.
I spent a while looking at the faces of acid attack victims. There’s real sadness there... agony... but also incredible strength and beauty.
Read this one – she tells the acid attack story better than I do.
She was attacked in London.
http://www.depilexsmileagain.com/gallery.htm
This is a photo gallery
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