I was mulling over what to choose to write on to kick-start my journey on this blog…and the choice finally did-not turn out to be a very tough one….I decided to write on something that has been bothering and disturbing me substantially for quite some time now – the inhumane incidents of rapes and sexual assaults on women. I would also like to purposely stick to this particular category of crime against women, because in my experience, it has had the ability of impacting me the most.
At the outset, when I started becoming aware of this issue and its magnitude, it generated a feeling of utter disbelief and numbness in me. I found it beyond myself to even imagine the state of mind of the victim after such a heinous act. And fathoming the state of mind of the perpetrators of such acts proved equally challenging. Till date, after reading about any such incident in the newspaper, that big “WHY?” raises its head in my mind. Is this phenomenon an offspring of the patriarchic set-up of our society? I used to consider this as a major cause, but my belief was challenged by the fact that this disease is rampant across the globe (and not just local to India), with not remarkable differences in degree and measure. Another fact which surprised me was the extent to which it goes unreported, and even if reported, unpunished. This is perhaps the only crime where the society chooses to treat the abused as the abuser. The social stigma which it attracts is so huge that the victim prefers to suffer in silence. This is the most unbelievable and contemptible part, which fills me with rage. In a way, such societal mindset creates a vicious circle wherein the perpetrator of the crime finds it too easy to commit such a blatant violation of an individual’s right to her body and not face any fitting retribution.
Are we comfortable with the status-quo? If yes, then God Bless Us. If not, what are we doing to change it? I, for one, am of the view that a genuine, meaningful, well-directed and sustained effort is required to tackle this phenomenon. It is high time for us to rise from our slumber and inertia and think and act with an intention to bring a positive change to the status-quo, and not just in short-lived spurts, but in a sustained manner. The first and the foremost step needed to accomplish this goal is also the most difficult. It involves a complete remodeling of the way in which we think. It involves dissolving the stereotypes created by us, which have tuned us to acknowledge another individual solely in terms of his/her gender, caste, class, religion and other such differentiators rather than his/her merit as just another individual irrespective of gender, caste class, religion etc. In a rapidly changing world and a fast-moving society, the temptations for quick-fixes and immediate gratification of sensual pleasures are also growing fast. It is compounded by the lack of effective, timely and exemplary retribution which such actions should rightfully entail. This is not only true for India, but is a disturbing reality world-wide. The flaw lies not in the enactment of laws, but their lax implementation. The dismal rate of reporting, the astoundingly low conviction rate and the excruciatingly long and painful durations of the trials don’t help in the least. In many of the cases, the victim is victimized over and over again by the very authorities and society, which are meant to respect her honor, uphold her rights as an individual and protect those rights if threatened.
In recent times, the print and television media have done praiseworthy work in highlighting the extent of penetration of this social ill in the society. The slow but steady trend of women empowerment has also resulted in loosening the strings of the tag of shame attached to this endemic disease. The awareness generated is instrumental in keeping the authorities on their toes. But these are just baby-steps and a lot still needs to be done.
Is there something that we, as individuals can do? The answer to this question is an emphatic YES. Society is an amalgamation of individuals and the responsibility for one’s own thoughts and actions lies with oneself alone. The most important contribution towards the well-being of society that each individual can make is to think and act responsibly under all circumstances. A change in the mindset of society simply means a change in the mindset of each and every individual that constitutes it. Once we do this, we could take further steps by creating awareness around us and adopting a zero-tolerance attitude towards such heinous crimes which plague the society. Each and every individual needs to pledge to educate oneself, his/her family members, especially women, and contribute towards spreading the message of an educated society in whatever capacity possible. Education here not only means just text-book education but a responsible, informed and balanced way of thinking.
It is high time that we give a serious thought towards building a more vibrant, free, fearless and livable world and follow it up with concrete, visible actions. It is the least we can do to fulfill our responsibilities as human beings gifted with the ability to think.
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