Syringe Attack: A sick mindset

Syringe attack: A sick Mindset

It was quite a normal evening for me in my dorm as I was busy folding the clothes, until the notification bell rang from Hamro Patro news, claiming four girls were attacked near Dallu area. It brought a cold chill down my spine. Worried me, immediately phoned my near ones who would use the same route almost daily. I should have worried them even more–a reflex­­­­ to my worried tone and the news. Specifically, these attacks on the person as an attempt to transmit blood borne disease such as HIV are called pin prick attack. But what causes one to do such weird and antisocial things? Biological Psychiatry says that human beings have a social disposition of sharing feelings. In case of hatred, anger or violence the emotion is often so grim and strong that the person feeling it wants to get rid of it, and since the emotion is so vaporous, the expression of it tends to be instantaneous as well. Although on moral grounds, the person knows hurting others is not right, there is tendency or an urge to eradicate bad feelings on a psychological level. According to evolutionary psychology, much of human behavior is an outcome of physiological adaptations that evolved to solve recurring problems in human ancestral environments. Due to wrong neural networking, when the person is exposed to threat and pain all the time, he/she becomes a victim of fight or flight syndrome and all they do is get offensive.

No sooner had the ripples of attacks at Dallu faded, the similar incident took place at Banepa on 28^th June. There are numerous cases that have not been reported or go unreported. Looking at the trend of growing number of similar attacks in different parts of the country, it seems syringe attack has become a “copycat crime” as a byproduct of media coverage. Copycat effect is an urge to seek for sensational publicity through an imitation of the crime of similar sort, the term first being used in 1918, by Jack the ripper. What I believe as a normal newspaper reader is that, the heavy publicity of “syringe attack” has led to the increment in such attacks across the country. Globally speaking of Copycat crime, the trend of pin-prick attack is not the first one. During the late1960s in USA, the Zodiac killer was so popular across the media that he claimed 37 murders in letters to the newspapers. 20 years later, Eddie Seda attacked victims in similar fashion in the New York City, killing the victims with his homemade gun. He left notes similar to Zodiac at the site of crime and even sent cryptic letters to the Police.

According to a 2002 journal, Self-Reported Copycat Crime Among a Population of Serious and Violent Juvenile Offenders, people who mimic crimes that have been publicized across news and movies have an antecedent medical soundness problem or criminal records or a history of violence. The Journal claims that the impact of media is not direct in increasing the number of criminals rather direct in increasing the criminal behavior. The minutia of crime and the methods used by the criminal is often described in media, more or less pitches an idea for the criminal mind as they are always attention seeking which has in fact increased the rate of syringe attack. As claimed by the attacker, the first attack at Dallu was by a pointed object, was wrongly publicized as “Syringe Attack” in some media. The wrong details or wrong presentation in the news may have paved a method in the attack at Banepa. The doctors from Shukraraj Tropical and Contagious Disease Cure Hospital, Teku have claimed that an actual syringe was used in the incident.

The media in the USA rarely report on teen suicides, and even when it does there is careful, understated and dampened coverage. They follow a guideline strictly, endorsed by the Center for Disease Control and National Institute of Medical Health and avoid sensationalizing such crimes. Likewise, the contagious looking crimes as the pin prick attack had to be carefully passed to the public and was never to be sensationalized. But what’s gone is gone, what lies ahead of us is important.

I recommend some measures to minimize such contagious looking crimes:

1.  The name of the criminal should be kept a secret, at least for some time. The Police and the media should agree upon to not disclose the criminal’s identity at least immediately. The name can be later made public during his/her trial at the court. This removes the unnecessary limelight that might bring for the criminal. Just in case, if the name is leaked it’ll be another issue and certainly not the criminal will be the center of attraction.

2.  The media does not flash the technicalities of the crime, and the methods used. Put differently, the immediate coverage of these sort of crimes should be avoided. The exact place and time should be kept anonymous along with the means used for the crime, and the criminal’s statement. Although, bad news travels fast, these facts should be kept suppressed for weeks if not months.

3.  The guidelines must be set by the Center for Mental Health and Counseling Nepal on not sensationalizing such crimes by the media. CMC Nepal should set the guidelines, if set–should implement it immediately to avoid contagious looking crimes to be sensationalized in coordination with the media.

4.  The social profile of the criminal, if it exists should be removed by the Law enforcement. In the era where world has been a global village and where screenshots are exchanged more than greetings, the social profile of the criminal should be removed so as to avoid unnecessary attention for the criminal.

5.  The approach for the victim, their family and friends for interviews of all sort should be avoided. With internet being accessible than ever, people are viewing YouTube even at the expense of their work period. With the number of fancy YouTube channels increasing for cheap popularity, the victims can be approached for unnecessary interviews. This is to be strictly omitted to avoid unnecessary ordeal and extravaganza.

Although, we’re too late for damping the “syringe attack”, let’s be early enough for another random attack. Who knows what might be just knocking the door?