Hunting Women Down
as A Pack – Gang Rape the New Reality
The cowardly Indian man now hunts and gang rapes women like a pack of bloodthirsty hounds. This is a new reality and we need to wake up to this obscene fact. The illusion that South India is safe in comparison to the North no longer exists. The twin gang rapes in Hyderabad and Coimbatore prove that women are not safe anywhere.
Is the new Indian man
so afraid of the educated, working and successful women that they have now
started hunting them down like a pack of wild barbarians? The Indian male who
worships Ma Durga has no qualms when it comes to disrobing her daughters.
India has failed as a
society and we need to accept this. We have let down 50% of our population again
and again and no matter what we say or do we do need to accept our failure.
The blame for most
crimes against women is due to the patriarchal nature of our society. Something
is definitely wrong with the Indian male psyche and conscience. Nothing changes
unless we fix this.
A lot of well-meaning
individuals advocate self-defense training for women. Self-defense is important
and does save your life in most circumstances.
Most women trained in
self-defense techniques will be able to tackle one man and at times two. The
self-defense training comes to naught when a woman is attacked by a group of
men from all sides. Which self-defense technique do you apply when ten to twelve
hands claw and rip your clothes, hair, and skin off?
Let’s stop blaming politicians
and policemen for failing to protect women. The safety and security of the
female voter have never been the priority of our politicians. The privileged class
of elected representatives doesn’t care as your vote is not necessary for them
to win elections.
All that the politicians
do after a horrible incident that shakes the very foundation of our society is
to pay lip service. Every political party does it so let’s not blame those in
power.
Policemen and women who
are duty-bound to protect the ordinary citizen are so caught up protecting the privileged
politician and dancing to their tunes that they don’t have the time or the inclination
to protect those who actually need protection.
Apart from politicians
and policemen, the biggest let-down for women has been the legal system. It has
been seven years since the horrific Nirbhaya rape and the barbarians who perpetrated the act
are still alive. Imagine the plight of the Nirbhaya parents who need to live with
this fact each day.
Why does a fast track
court take 6 months to a year to decide on a rape case? What is stopping the courts
from working 24/7 when it comes to passing judgments in such heinous crimes?
Why are adjournments allowed? The Indian legal system has a lot to answer for.
If we don’t want India known
as the gang rape capital of the world, we need to change the way we bring up
our boys. Instead of focussing all our attention on what the girl child wears
let us focus on changing the attitude of our boys who will soon become men.
Teach boys to respect
women and treat them as equals. We have failed as parents when it comes to bringing
up boys. The violence against women is a consequence of our failure as parents.
Let us not make this mistake again.
Pay attention to how
your boy child treats his mother, sister, friend and other women he encounters on
a daily basis. Correct and teach them what is right and wrong. Don’t make the
same mistakes that the previous generation of parents did.
One thing that we need
to do is to resist the temptation of painting all men with the same brush.
There are many wonderful fathers, grandfathers, brothers, uncles, cousins, nephews
and friends who treat the women they encounter on a daily basis with the utmost
respect. Unfortunately, the percentage of such men is on the decline these
days.
There is no easy and simple
solution to the menace of gang rape. Everyone will need to make an effort to
change as a society. The change will not happen overnight. Let us pray and hope
that no parent goes through the horror of what the parents of the Hyderabad
doctor went through again.
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