Alter Education, Alter Society

Shattering cries led the government to amend the laws.
Could it remove the existing structural flaws?
Except the education model allowed the Norwegian companies in.
Government should search the answer if it is really keen.
Education on reproductive health and social credit score
May curb rape and alter the society to the core.

In an unprecedented scale, manifestations against rape, fuelled by women of all walks of life, gripped the country. Air is thick with cries demanding capital punishment of the rapists and an end to rape. So strong was the cry, the cabinet nodded to raise the ceiling of capital punishment for rape to death. Some even consider to amend the definition of rape in the law.

Skeptics have already put a question mark about its effectiveness. In a country where vulnerable groups, religious minorities are being persecuted continuously, where flawed education system does not make good citizens to make aware the rights of others and duties to the nation and society, it will be naïve to think amended law is a magic bullet to end rape.

In recent years, our education system regressed back to a period that is comparable to dark ages. Our syllabus was updated by dropping poems and essays written by authors belonging to different faiths. Pythons were further endangered in our alphabet book and even replaced by rituals pretty common in dominant faith group. Reproductive health is never discussed in schools. In fact, in university and colleges it is slightly discussed and never talked about at great length.

We allowed a Norwegian brand to dominate our cellular phone market but never tried to emulate successful reproductive health education system found in Norway. The country is considered a pioneer in this domain. Country's education ministry runs an educational program titled "Newton" on its national channel to create awareness on reproductive health issues among school students.

But here we face increasing difficulty to talk about such topic. An online educational content platform once broadcast one or two clips of menstruation but it later took down the contents after facing stiff resistance from a fanatic group.

In Canadian universities, students' association or individual student often receives free packages of toys used for orientation towards reproductive activity. These toys are pretty common and help a lot to check the reproductive behavior. Such toys are still seen as taboos in our society.

Back in December last year, I read an investigative report on the Dhaka Tribune on underaged sex workers of Bangladesh. Many of them were sold to brothels at an age when they even do not know what intercourse is. Many clients in Daulatdia brothel told the reporter they prefered to start their day with such activity and went the brothel couple of times in a week. If there were toys in our society, we might restrain the demand-supply mechanism and curb the number of sex workers.

Lowering the marrying age of women and drying up of the stipend program for female education are the two serious errors the government made in its tenure.

Just to inflate its popular vote bank , its erroneous decisions in the long run seriously harmed the society and the nation.

Political leadership at times nerds to be bold it is a pity that power grabbing generals introduced contraceptive and family planning in this society. No political leadership dared to take such bold decisions in such a regressed society like ours.

Prof Humayun Azad, academic and linguist, aptly captures Bengalis' reproductive life in one of his writings:

Reproductive life of the Bengalis is a big taboo. Seldom is known and written about that life. That life is banned and shrouded in mystery. As if any discussion about it were a serious transgression. It is an indication that life is dirty, polluted, full of sins, unnatural and devoid of orgasm. Bengalis are very keen in sex; every male is a Casanova, but their demand remains unmet. So their reproductive life is full of perversions. Adolescents engage in pervasive acts, youth stays sex starved, so does the grown-up and aged people. Most Bengalis take great pleasure in talking about reproductive life and spread rumors about others' reproductive life; this life occupies a great part of the discussion of the grown-up. They are sophisticated imposter; when you inquire them about sex they play ignorant as if they never heard of it and never knew anything about it. This is the pervasive part of Bengalis' reproductive life. Bengali children never get any education about it; they do not know about their reproductive organs; they do not know their use. They indirectly face some religious and social obstacles. These obstacles are unscientific. Bengalis' reproductive life is devoid of science and art. It is imbued with cruelty. Bengalis spend their youth with unmet demand, which results in perversion. Rape is a vernacular incident in Bengal, the Bengalis could be aptly described as racist race. And the reason lies in the absence of a healthy reproductive life.In the West, at the age when young men and women get closer and indulge in knowing each other, Bengalis spend that age in agony. Bengalis' youth is a complete failure, full of agony. Sane men never rape, sick men cannot help raping. Extra-marital life of the Bengalis is pretty wide, they are constantly in search of chances; but their married reproductive life is the sole area to meet the physical demand.Are the Bengalis satisfied in this life? No survey can be found in this regard; no discussion can be heard. Bengalis in this life remain unsatisfied and deeply unhappy. In the act of reproduction, Bengali male is the active participant; the female remains passive. The male only thinks of temporary pleasure and nothing else; he does not know that the partner also wants the pleasure; he never tries to know that.Bengali male and female never reach orgasm. They have no idea of orgasm. Most Bengalis lack the healthy and trouble-free ambiance to get orgasm. So instead of getting inspired, Bengalis quickly draw conclusion: it is the briefest task of their life though it is perhaps the greatest and important task of their life. Dissatisfaction they draw from this life surrounds their entire life, makes them sick. The sickness results in sudden desire. Whenever the Bengalis encounter a woman, they think of her an object of sex. They copulate with her in their minds. Such a sick race in reproductive life cannot become successful in other parts of their life. (Source: The Bengalis: A Sick Race? by Humayun Azad)

Prof Azad, who was attacked in the Ekushey Book Fair with machete in 2005 at the same spot where a blogger was killed in 2015, bluntly decoded the problem of our reproductive life in harsh language.

Since the source of the problem is known, government should take bold steps to address it. At the individual level, altering our education system is a good option to fight rape. At the aggregate level, some new concepts could be introduced in the society so that a reward and punishment mechanism being followed for individual conduct.

Social credit score, introduced in China, could seriously be thought an alternative for gauging good conducts, otherwise not reflected in social status or education or wealth, of citizens interested to avail some public goods and services or to engage in other aspects of life.

Frequent transgression could be reflected in poor social credit score and the individual will be barred from getting desired public goods and services. This in turn makes one more conscious about his social credit score and improves his public behavior and interaction.

A person who has less carbon footprint, less dependence on gov't money,less harassment record can possess high social credit score than a rich individual and that high social credit score could place him ahead of that rich individual in availing public goods and services.

So when a citizen sees his social credit score secures him some position in the society and at the national level, he should mobilize more effort to care about others, nature and cultivate good manners.

Right kind of education that incorporates education on reproductive life starting from the elementary level of schooling could churn out more sane and sensible individuals. Introduction of social credit score, on the other hand, nudges a society to embrace the right kind of conduct and reduce the incidence of social maladies.

Social Credit Score For Bangladesh

Death of a child domestic help, resulted in the arrest of wife of a government engineer, has almost gone unnoticed in the social media and the press. She was recruited when she was 8 years old as her father could not bear expenses of her and her siblings.She lasted in this profession about 4 years, enduring all kinds of hardships and tortures. At 12, she finally gave in. Freedom at last! Her body bears all the marks of torture.

In Dhanmondi, another domestic help was choked to death after electric short circuit caused fire to a flat. She was too old to evacuate the building in time. Landlords of the flat where the fire originated were out when the tragedy struck.I am appalled to see no significant reaction, even lukewarm, to death of these people. Having read this sort of news on too many occasions, the society has grown inured to such tragedies.

Culprits purport this kind of crime to working class often perch on upper rung of the social ladder and often go scot free.

Often we see that people get fired or get scolding from school or college authority for social media posts that deem unacceptable to certain quarter. It is because they hurt their values or do not get along with their policies.

Different groups of people and companies have different policies. And they reward or punish their employees or disciples who do comply or do not comply with these policies. Apart from that we also see too many incidents of fake news, cyber bullying and social media account hacking. This kind of conduct destroys life, property and social harmony.

To check this kind of behavior, we should take cue from China that is introducing a unique social credit score for citizens and businesses.Based on this social credit score, individual and business will be rewarded and punished.

How one interacts with others, treats his surroundings, performs his role as a social creature, leads a lawful and ethical life, upholds consumer rights, pays taxes , undertakes corporate social responsibility and patronizes good initiative will be reflected in the Social Credit Score.

You may be a topper in the class but you regularly bully one fellow classmate at school, give troubles to your teacher and spread hatred through Facebook. It will reflect in your Social Credit Score and ultimately downgrade you in your year-end final school report card, which will take into account a student's Social Credit Score.

You may be a government employee, got the job by passing BCS exam, but shirk your duties, take bribes to delay a project, overrun project costs to gain benefits, mistreat subordinates and intimidate others who hold different views than yours. Your Social Credit Score may cost you your next increment or promotion or downgrade you to an inferior position.

By the same token, Social Credit Score can do a lot of benefits to improve business environment. A businessman who fails to repay his loans in time, launders money abroad and cheats friends and clients is worthy of a poor Social Credit Score. It may cost his exclusive right to a business association, MP seat, his children's right to get admitted into elite schools and further loans.

Obviously communist China envisaged such score to carry out massive surveillance on its own citizens and dissenters. It presented Social Credit Score in such a way to convince others and to hide its true intentions. Whatever the motive is, the idea sounds good and if it is implemented by welfare countries where market economy is already functioning by stripping of some of the transgressions.

Despite being a dysfunctional democracy, there is no wrong to get inspired from an idea, mooted and popularized by a communist country. I think this concept of Social Credit Score will find huge audience in democratic west, where it will be put in to test and will work more properly because there already exists enlightened societies who know how to put new ideas into action.

You will alter your conduct towards housemaid if mistreating housemaid costs you your job or promotion. In this sense Social Credit Score nudges one change his or her behavior to others.

Individual traits , good deeds have never been reflected in formal dealings and transactions. Social Credit Score has the potential to formalize our good behavior into our day-to-day dealings and affairs.

It may not root out the social evils overnight, but its nudging effect will reduce the incidence of social vices and value good conducts in the society. Its impact on society is enormous, leading us to the ultimate welfare country that we have been harboring for far too long in our minds.

Doomed is the society that does not recognize contributions of an honest individual ,who does not engage in evil doing but suffers all sorts of evils of an unlawful society, and prizes the evildoers. Swollen bank balance, property and show of wealth cannot distinguish the type and contributions of the two categories of people. Time has come to float Social Credit Score that duly recognizes good conducts of a citizen.