India's problem with rape & sexuality

It is rather ironic for one to think “who’s next?” rather than “why should there be a next?” when it comes to issues such as rape but unfortunately this is the state of the situation in India. India’s rape culture can be categorised as a complex issue as there are many reasons for such a “culture” to exist in the world’s second most populated country. There is a mix of societal, cultural and governance factors but no matter how complex it may seem to be, no excuses can be made for such an issue as lives are destroyed constantly, even as this article is being written and read. Just days back, a mother and daughter were forcefully shaved and paraded around their village after they resisted rape attempts by a local official. Months back, a teenage girl was attacked with acid after she resisted an attempted gang rape. Perhaps what is most frustrating is knowing that this is a widespread problem implicating men & women from all socioeconomic statuses and the government’s inability in acting swiftly on such a dire issue has allowed it to continuously destroy lives and cast a shadow over India’s reputation as an emerging superpower. Clearly, the question that needs to be asked is how and why is this problem even in existence in the first place?

Victim-blaming

Victims should always be accorded respect and concern when they voice out their issues. However, this is not the case in India as we see victims facing scrutiny and suspicions despite their courage in coming out. In other words, this is “victim-blaming” - where victims are asked questions, many times intrusive ones, to determine if they had told the truth. While there may indeed be an issue of false reporting in India, one cannot simply assume that all reports are false from the onset. This creates an unfavourable setting for the victim and at the same time becomes inertia for victims to come out to lodge a police report, knowing that their claims could be thrown out easily while facing embarrassing questions and having to relive the torturous moments of their ordeal. This problem is worsened if the victim knows the perpetrator personally as investigators may then try to push the blame onto the victim. Questions may also be made against the victims’ choice of clothing, habits or why they were in the location in the first place - questions that clearly pushes the blame onto the victims.

Ineffective legal & justice system

Even when victims muster their courage to make a police report, this does not mean that the perpetrator will face justice anytime soon. Investigations are slow as there is a huge backlog of cases in police departments in India and complaints had been made against officers dragging their feet in conducting investigations. Despite the government’s promise of fast-tracking court processes after the high-profile case in 2012 where a young woman was grievously assaulted, cases still take many months to come to a conclusion, lengthening the pain for the victims as they have to continuously relive their ordeal while facing private and public scrutiny. For example, the conviction of 6 men who had raped and killed a 8 year old girl in January 2018 came only in June 2019, 1.5 years after the heinous crime, rendering the family and community in a state of distress as they relive the pain of losing their loved one over and over again. Perhaps what is more painful is knowing that despite all this wait, the conviction rate for rape cases in India remains at a low of 25% which really adds to the unwillingness of victims in putting themselves through such an arduous journey and emboldening would-be or previous perpetrators to commit such crimes (again), knowing that justice may not even come close to them.

Patriarchy & societal norms India, till today, is still a largely patriarchal society where men play a larger and more dominant role in both society and at home. As a result, women in India face obstructions to their social progress and discrimination. Men are thought to be strong figures which motivates them to show their power and the lack of sex education (thought to corrupt the minds of youths) in India consequentially results in the current crisis we see in India. As women are constantly placed in a subordinate position, many a time, they are not given the opportunity to fight back or sound off to their loved ones and this allows the would-be perpetrators to take advantage of this situation - exacerbating the nation's crisis.

Government and judiciary’s response

Clearly, the government is slow in reacting. Despite promises to improve the situation since the revelations of the severity of situation, the problem remains, possibly worse than before. Even after policies changes and laws amended, the plight of women in India remains as dire as years ago. Hospitals remain inadequate in rendering assistance to rape victims and even safe abortions may not be easily accessible. Some would even say the introduction of death penalty as a punishment for the assailants was a mere election ploy (moreover, it hurts the victims more as it gives them additional stress). While there is a higher rate of reporting, this does not aid in the situation if conviction rates remain low. Worse still, the Supreme Court made several directives to section 498A of the penal code in 2018 which direct police officers to not make arrests until the claims can be confirmed as true by family welfare committees in an attempt to curb false reports, thereby lengthening the legal process of bringing perpetrators to justice. In addition to the government’s inaction, perhaps the most ironic part is that government officials are involved in this crisis as well, as the perpetrators, the very group of people that the government should be fighting against. One can only ask if the government is truly sincere in making changes to the society.

Fighting back

When the government fails to act, the people will. As a result of the government’s incompetency in stopping such crimes, many groups have emerged to fight the trend of rape crimes. Such groups include the #Metoo movement which spilled over into India from USA and individuals who had formed organisations aimed at educating locals, protecting victims or empowering women to defend and fight for themselves. Groups such as Sayfty, Apne Aap and Red Brigade have been actively fighting for women rights and empowerment and it seems comforting to know that people will always fight for themselves should their leaders choose not to.

Conclusion

"If they (men) are more respectful towards them (women), then things will change at the grassroots level. It will happen slowly, but everyone has to move together." - Madhuri Dixit

This is an issue that should not exist in the first place. There should have already been laws and measures to ensure gender equality and safety for women. Yet, there is not enough in India. The fight has to continue. It just cannot stop. 2012 marked the start of increasing focus on the problem, both by the government and the public and in 2019, this focus has seen actions but it is still not enough. The people of India has to fight if the government does not. Rape is a serious crime and there should not be an excuse for it, no cultural reasons, no historical reasons, nothing at all. A crime is a crime and the victims need answers and a closure. The perpetrators need to answer for their crimes and pay for them and the government needs to act on it fast.

Additionally, the trend of false reporting has to stop as it only continues to delegitimise actual reporting of rape and creates a environment of cynicism which is unhealthy and potentially toxic. The legal system should not be used as a method of getting back at others.

If India wishes to fast-track itself to a superpower status, it will first need to resolve its social issues. How great can a country be if its people are constantly under threat from within?

(Cover photo by Naveed Ahmed)

By Eugene Goh