The writer is a student of political science at Delhi University and tweets @anshul_pandey
The arrival of a girl child in most families in India is not marked by distribution of sweets or a chorus of joy. Instead, there are only curses reserved for the child whose only crime is her gender. She is denied an education to pursue any goals and ambitions she may have in life. She is restricted to the four walls of her house for the sake of preserving her virginity which is her only asset in India’s arranged-marriage market. She is often married off to a complete stranger at an age when she should be in school. Right from day one, she is treated as the property of someone or the other and the onus of preserving her ‘value’ is put on her head.
When Indians have such a culture, which blames the consumption of chow mein or greater interaction with the opposite sex or most importantly, the victim herself, as the main reasons for rape, rather than looking inward, how can one expect to satisfy the chants of justice by castrating or hanging the rapists? The accused are only a small part of the problem and dealing with them in isolation isn’t going to prevent the rapes. India needs, urgently, to review — first and foremost — its understanding and behaviour towards women. Unless or until Indians are ready to change their mindset — which is so pathetically evident in the misogynist lyrics of Bollywood songs and the portrayal of women in mainstream media — they cannot expect to put an end to these crimes against women. Domestic violence, female foeticide, honour killings, etc. are no less heinous crimes than rape, so why should we be outraged just by rapes only?
It is instinctive to demand severe punishment for the rapists. However, when one tries to see the effect that the fulfilment of this demand would have, one comes to terms with the larger picture. If death penalty for rapists is made a law in India, it would have to convict and hang several of its own members of parliament since many have charges of rape pending against them. Furthermore, there would have to be trials of people from India’s armed forces who have charges of rape pending against them. We would have to hang fathers, brothers, grandfathers, uncles, relatives — in short, every person who is convicted of rape and that tally would not be small. Is Indian society so bloodthirsty that it is willing to hang these men but not address the underlying flaws causing such acts?
Castration for rapists is already a law in South Korea and yet, the country is not ranked very high in terms of gender equality. A section of Indian society is rather moderate in demanding the death penalty and says that it should be awarded in the rarest of the rare rape cases. But can one weigh the heinousness of one crime with regard to another on a scale of brutality?
By offering prophylactic solutions like castration and the death penalty, the whole debate is reduced to a rather simplistic story of a villain and a victim. This also means that we, in effect, absolve ourselves of the larger responsibility of creating such a stifling patriarchal society in the first place. If Indians want justice for the 23-year-old dead victim of this gang rape and her many counterparts who are struggling in various other parts of the country for their lives, they will have to start with themselves.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 31st, 2012.
COMMENTS (36)
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Europe and North America are safer for women than South Asia is. We should be thinking why this is the case and improve our societies.
I do not see a better way to punish the culprits than castration but my fear lies elsewhere. i fear if such a law comes that castrates a rapist, i do not think the rapist would risk letting the girl live.they would kill the girl. first of all we should think how to prevent rape. post rape remedies matter little to the victim.all those men who are saying lofty things..will they agree to marry a girl who has been raped. any man can be a rapist if he gets a hint that he can get away with it..how can we change this objectifying tendency i hardly have an answer. fear of law can only be partly handy, that crooked mindset..how to change that?
@Adi Ud-din The imam was completely lying. Lots of my relatives live in Muslim countries and I have lived in Pak; trust me no girl can walk here safely in the day let alone at night. Sometimes boys even sneak into women's only Parks and Bazaars to tease and molest girls. You can't compare women's freedom in West to over here.
@Foreign Leg: Your foolish,insensitive remarks are an insult to people who have to live the fear and humiliation of the rape of a loved one.
http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/bangalore/father-of-rape-victim-in-bangalore-attacked-again/article42629
@Foreign Leg: In the South, such abhorrent behavior will never be tolerated and the entire family would be ostracized.
How can you make such outrageous remarks when the reality is exactly the opposite.What planet are you living on?
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/haunted-by-stigma-kerala-rape-victim-regrets-going-public/1053196/
@Sufi: I don't normally resort to such childish responses but I can think of no other response to your inane comment then to say shutup. Please shutup. The mullah brigade preaches about how rape is a woman's fault and people like you continue to spread that absurd school of thought by saying 50% of the issue will be resolved if women cover up. 50% of the issue will be resolved if men stay within the 4 walls of their home. How about proposing that? My clothes have nothing to do with the nasty misogynistic mentality of some of the men out there. They're sick and no amount of fabric can change that. It's FABRIC, not body armor. Absolutely disgusted with people trying to absolve men who rape from their unforgivable sin. I don't care if a woman is naked, doesn't give anyone the right to violate her.
Rape is a serious crime than murder because in rape cases the victim suffers a life long trauma- psychological, physiological and sociological and justice for the victim and and for the society bears a heavy responsibility, unlike in murder cases where the victim is dead and the justice is only for the society.
Unfortunately, prosecution of rape cases all over the world is very complicated and the best evidence in a court of law, upon which our modern society is found, is collected through methodical scientific process. For that to happen, the victim has to be presented to a well trained forensic medical staff and law enforcement personnel in a timely manner. Unlike the present case, most rape cases are either reported a day later, by which time the evidences necessary for conviction is lost or many cases are never reported, all over the world.
Prosecution of rape cases poses a long recurring psychological trauma to the victim and the successful conviction depends on the tenacity of prosecutor in cooperation with the victim and victim has to be strong to see it through. Only a good scientific evidence brings about quick prosecution and solace to the victim.
In an unsuccessful prosecution or in a lengthy prosecution, the victim is raped twice, once by the rapist and again by the system.
Punishment to rapist is irrelevant because you cannot punish a rapist without successful prosecution. So, the emphasis on justice for rape victim should be on successful and quick and effective and less traumatic prosecution rather than punishment for the rapist.
In a populous country like India where the system is overloaded, prosecution of rape cases unavoidably becomes traumatic for the victim and many victims eventually will not come forward and the perpetrators go free due to inefficiency.
Thievery is easy to prove because the stolen property is a tangible evidence and leaves a trail of evidences and murderer is easily convicted because of motif. Such is not the case in rape, because the rape victim has all the evidences and thus the crime places an undue burden on the rape victim to come forward to convict the rapist.
Rape is often an opportunistic crime and every man is capable of becoming a varying degree of rapist /molester. No society is immune from this crime. The rapist may be a serial rapist, opportunistic rapist from street gang or an IMF chairman or politician or President of country or policeman or even a family member or a husband.
Now, can anyone prevent a rape. The answer is no. The best solution should be how to bring the justice to the victim quickly and effectively by successful prosecution.
Confession of a rapist is not an evidence and in most instances the victim cannot remember the rapist(s) and the police invariably fabricate evidences, mostly confession, against alleged rapist due to social pressure if the case is politicized.
As far punishment to the rapist- if I were a judge I will castrate him, and crucify but I have to prove that he is the rapist. So, I would encourage the medical and legal and law enforcement professionals to work with the rape victims professionally and thoroughly.
Only religious studies can slve this....absence of religion knlwge datz was it hppned
@Sivakasi @Foreign Leg
One minor girl is sexually abused or physically harassed every three days in Bangalore city, going by the confirmed cases of complaints received by two child helplines.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-12-27/bangalore/360212281sexual-abuse-harassment-cases-child-abuse
Your comments are nothing but pure rubbish.Patriarchy is a problem throughout the country.
@ Sufi. It is thinking like yours that is the problem, it is not the female who is to blame but sick males who think they can abuse a female for their way of dressing.. Nothing gives any man the right to rape a woman, read the Quran, you are supposed to lower your gaze in the presence of a female..
anshul when u say rape is not law and order problem u can say this about any crime. you can always claim that murder, robbery stealing all are because of social problem or because of mental problem of the accused by having tougher law for rape and molestation will also empower the women and give them confidence to go out and be confident.
50 % of the solution is for women to cover themselves conservatively
I thank you all for the generous response that you have given to this article. My thanks go out to every person who has liked, tweeted, shared and even more so, commented on this article. It is a sign that these thoughts of mine have evoked an honest response from you, which is the most a writer can desire.
The Delhi Gang Rape case is a ghastly incident which has already moved not only the people from India, but across the world. It is just a small example of the extremely dangerous situation that women live in and the suffering that they have to go through every day.
My opposition to the Death Penalty or Castration is primarily based on three planks.
Firstly, by awarding the death penalty or castration to the accused, we are allowing ourselves to be gratified by the same bloodlust that the rapists were baying for when they raped the girl. This animal instinct for gratification by showing the rapists their "place" does not distinguish us from the rapists themselves who, as you all will consider, also wanted to show the girl her "place" for using her liberty to go out at night with her friend. Rape is much more than a sudden beastial desire for sex. It is about power - mainly about the power to dominate or to inflict violence. The answer to violence is never more violence.
Secondly, death penalty or castration allows us, as I have mentioned in the article, to absolve ourselves of the greater responsibility of creating a stifling patriarchal society in the first place. We have to remember that in our society, most of the derogatory abuses have a feminine orientation. For example, what do we suggest to a person whom we deem to be a coward? "Why don't you wear bangles"? What do we suggest a man who is sentimental enough to show his emotions through tears? "Don't Cry like a girl". When we think of the abuses to hurl at the other person, aren't they all comprised of oaths to inflict the worst kind of violence on the female members of the other person's family?
My point is, in our society we have made it a crime for a man to show any signs of femininity. We just cannot tolerate effeminate men. If you agree with me on this, then I am sure that you would also agree that the rapists are the victims of this very mindset of the society which encourages men to act contemptuously and violently towards women. The difference between them and us is that we have internalized that violence and the rapists demonstrated it externally on a woman whom they deemed as a threat to this mindset. It is the society that has made masculinity synonymous with gender violence. The rapists are but just small strokes of paint in this larger picture.
Thirdly, by punishing the rapists with death penalty or castration, we treat rape as a law and order problem. Rape is not just a law and order problem. It is callous and insensitive to treat it as such. I reiterate, rape is about domination and power. I rape you, I am the master and dare you forget it. You do as I desire. Sure, strict implementation of law (even with castration or death penalty as "deterrents", although that claim is also highly contested. Please see Global Gender Gap Report 2012.) can bring rape count down and make us feel better about ourselves and our society. However, it will not change the understanding that we have of women in our society and neither will it change the regressive attitudes and mindsets (so evident in the mutterings of the likes of Abhijit Mukherjee) that we have.
The Delhi Gang Rape case is not just about Rape. Its about crimes against women in general and the misogynist attitude and contemptuous mindset against women in particular. It is a challenge to the notion that women are someone's property and need to be "protected" either through laws or through moral policing.
I am sure some of you would agree with me. I am even more sure that most of you will disagree with me. However, disagreement is the bane of the democracies in the world and freedom of expression is the spirit of that democracy.
Thanks again for reading and replying to the article.
Anshul.
"We would have to hang fathers, brothers, grandfathers, uncles, relatives —" And Husbands as well......................
Capital punishment will not solve the problem, fancy articles will?
Immediate and short-term solutions must be implemented and not delayed till long-term solutions evolve and take effect. The author need to change his mind again.
@author, The castration you have referred to is chemical castration and is largely reversible and was found to be fairly effective. But, I suspect that this article is more of an exercise in seeking attention than an intellectually honest attempt at facing a problem.
So from what I understand... We should strive to create society based on gender-equality, wherein the girl child is welcomed and treated as equal (which is fine). In the meantime it is OK for all the girls to be raped in the vain hope that everything will be alright sooner or later (mostly later). They can bear consolation with the fact that society is moving towards gender equality (whenever that happens).
How does the author not realize that drastic measures are needed to fix this issue... If capital punishment & castration are needed - so be it...
I'm not decrying equal rights to women or gender equality - however that is a long-term solution. Its already happening - atleast in cities... Notice the no of men in the protest. Both the solutions need to go hand in hand.
I really don't see a point here author. Giving harsh punishment will act as deterence. I am sure these people wouldn't have done it if they had punished for their earlier crimes. And many more would be rapist will think twice before doing it.
@sivkasi you are mistaken my dear. I don't know what is your definition of north indian but rape do happen in Chennai, Bengalore even in Kerala where north indian population is very less. Andhra comes in top three states for chrime against women. So it is time to come down from your high horse and find a solution.
Yawn! In summary, the writer has nothing to offer, other than his personal objections towards life imprisonment and the death penalty for brutal crimes, because the rapist is but a product of a misogynist society and deserves only our sympathy. This is poppycock. There are two parts to this issue that can be dealt with separately, and indeed should be. They are the law enforcement part and the society part. There have been 653 rapes in Delhi last year and one conviction - what in God's name does this have to do with the rapist watching Bollywood movies or his neighbor aborting a female foetus? We need the application and implementation of law enforcement to be changed, and if laws need to be made more stringent to avoid these elements from walking free, then so be it. The point on having to arrest uncles or brothers or parliamentarians is truly laughable. He also does not understand the rarest of the rare criteria for the death penalty which is currently applicable in the case of Sec 302 - if the judiciary can figure it out for murder, why not for Sec 375 - 376. Several other urgent changes that could help are increased use of technology to register FIRs (full computerization of police stations), better training of cops and an escalation matrix for brutal crimes. This part of the change needs to happen NOW and cannot wait for society to become docile and peace-loving.
Now on the society side, the issues mentioned are much more prevalent in the Gangetic belt because of a more patriarchal society and low education levels of men in general - they cannot be generalized to represent the West and South. For a start, people need to be shamed into changing their point of view, and heavy fines should be levied. Films are but a reflection of society, and women on the screen have always been objectified, although the increased visibility of skin needs to be correlated with the increased availability of porn through the internet - getting Kareena or Katrina to wear more clothes is not going to stop rapes; should we also police the internet now? Sanitizing society from all negative influences is not the way to go - what you need is to institute positive change starting at school level to build a different mindset in the future. This is a gradual process with no shortcuts.
what kind of stupid article was this??? who cares, how the birth of a baby girl is celebrated, and what comes next in her life, that is totally a seperate issue, which should be discussed under the forum of equal rights for both the sexes, what is the REAL ISSUE is that a rapist, should be given capital punishment no matter what...i really dont get people like this writer, who veryyyy unneccesarily try to complicate things which are crystal clear. And by the way mr writer, rapist are everywhere , in India, Pakkistan etc etc,its a sickness, not limited to certain sociological factors of some specific breed ok, STOP complicating an issue which is crystal clear and even the dumbest of the people would be dead sure about how it should be dealt and punsihed. I really dont get the views of people, like this writer, these drawing room chatter boxes. What a pathetic article
I don't think it is either or but both the approaches. We have to punish the culprits severely so they cannot repeat it ever again. Death penalty may be excessive but castration and their property confiscation is not. After castration in jail they can have as much sex as they want! The change of culture would take a long time and these beasts cannot be allowed to terrorize and victimize women and wait for a perfect society. The govt may not be able to hang all fathers, grandfathers, uncles who have been guilty (not alleged) but it can print and publish their names and last addresses so their sons and grandsons can see the truth. The fear of publicity and severe punishment is a good if not perfect deterrent.
It is fashionable among Leftist Liberals to keep saying 'change should begin with ourselves' to explain away systemic flaws. It is a alibi for not doing anything!
Consider the social evils India has/had - Child Marriage, Sati, Untouchability, Caste Discrimination etc. All of these were changed by stringent laws & enforcement. Through empowerment of these sections thru various programs.
Consider the status of women - they constitute about 50% of citizenry, yet they are discriminated in every sphere. Such discrimination is not protected by law. Being physically weaker sex they are vulnerable to violence. Indian laws condone marital rape. Indian laws have extemely high burden of proof for proving rape, and subject the women to judicial torture (thus majority cases are never reported). Majority of rapes are done by people known to women. Thus there is a familial & societal pressure on women to swallow their pride.
This can all be changed by two things:
Clear headed laws that provide protection to a weaker class - Women. Strong enforcement of all laws. THis mean better equipped and educated police force and far higher strength in judiciary. It is appalling that India has only 15 judges for 1million, while china has some 160judges/million! That's 1/10th of judges of our neighbor.If we could get rid of well entrenched systems like untouchability, could empower lower castes - there is no reason why we can't get rid of patent injustice through better laws & enforcement. But to say 'change should begin by ourselves' is to say 'let us do nothing'!!
Quit investing in a country that is full of pretensions. Indians pretend to have laws, rights and equality.. They are high on philosophy and morality. But in practice they are a klepto society that will NOT enforce laws and refuses to rid itself of feudal chauvinism. They feel "sorry" for having a daughter. How crazy can that be! - absolutely no pride in having a female child! One sure way to bring some pressure on one of the most materialistic societies is to stop all foreign investment and also expose its hollow pride on the Internet.
Good piece, we need to change the mindset, education for all and equall justice. Give education to the girls and boys both, mother should teach their son that all women are like sisters, mother , let us chane the men's approach toward women. they should think if their sisters, and daughter would be the same victim. Becuase this is the law of nature. AS YOU SOW SO SHALL YOU REAPY...today or tomrrow.
In Indian cities the number of crimes (especially against women and that too rapes in particular) is directly proportional to the population of North Indians in that city.
North India has chronically mistreated women. Haryana and Punjab leads in female feoticide.
Most rapists/criminals are from the states of UP, Haryana, Bihar, MP etc...
Like some people suggested, India should be divided into at least 2 parts (the progressive 4 south Indian states and the rest of the country). Or even more as Maharastrians and Gujaratis are quite cultured people and it would be wrong to group them with the regressive North.
@Adil Uddin: Yes you are right but our people are so ignorant to understand the reality or may be they want to live in an intentional bliss of ignorance. In America for example Woman can file a rape case against husband and i was studying one instance where one woman had claimed that her husband raped her for two years on a daily basis and he was charged with more than 600 counts of rapes and same is the case in many laws in Europe. Also I have been to Europe and believe me Women are more secure than in Pakistan as they can go out alone even after the sunset but in Pakistan you cannot even imagine to think about it but anyway Ignorance is a bliss and since we have to portray us as the best in the world so many things must be dragged under the rug so that from the onset everything seems immaculate.
We would have to hang fathers, brothers, grandfathers, uncles, relatives Well so be it then tbh. They should have thought of the consequences before they violated another human being then shouldn't they? And also get off your moral brigade high horse. Rapists, particularly with what happened to that poor poor girl, need to have their penises cut off and fed to them. I don't believe in molly coddling rapists, they need to be wiped out as soon as they are discovered. No its not degrading yourself to their level. Rather it's a massive prevention of even the slightest possibility of happening again.
I think the most important factor that will stop the rape cases is to attach the property of the rapist and his family. People love property more than sex.
@Shamsher Awan:
I live in Canada,and I still remember few Imams here during past 10 years and what they said about honour of women in Islamic and Western nations.In high school,there was this Arab student who used to be our Imam during Friday prayers and once during a Khutba or speech he said that in Muslim nations,Alhamdulillah women can walk out on the streets till midnight and look at these Western countries and their culture,they use their naked pictures on Billboards etc...and lecture about morality and freedom.These Western nations don't know anything about respecting women and so on,that's what he said.
I don't know how reliable were the facts and figures which Dr. Zakir Naik present when it comes to rape cases in USA and other Western nations,but I wonder what would the same Imam think after living in Pakistan for just few months.
I am against capital punishment in mot cases, but rape and terrorism are two crimes which should have a death penalty as the punishment.
Dude,,, in south korea "chemical" castration is the punishment given to the rapists which is entirely different from surgical castration.
Chemical castration does not involve removal of sexual organs. rather it involves suppression of sex drive by using drugs that have temporary effects. Effects begin to revert as soon as the dosages are stopped.
No wonder why there are no good results with this methodology.
Instead surgical castration is implemented in czech republic and germany. Their stats are good.
It all comes down to carrot and stick approach or you could say cause and effect approach. you are hardwired to be good citizen by your parents and teachers but many are not.
You dont have to change yourself, but you have to change those who were forced to live either as animals in harsh enviornments or had choice to be spoilt by support of their godfathers. They are godless and have no shame or guilt.
They have accepted such crimes as part of life. As a matter of fact did you know families living in slums gather around and watch pornography and rape videos. Imagine what goes into minds of those children who grow up in such families.
Fear is the only way to control such beasts. Surgical castration in this case is a must I believe. For obvious reasons you cant expect to make it a law. But to quench the anger and agony of the public this has to be done.
First of all the South Asian mentality have to be changed. I myself worked with many victims of rape in Pakistan and people will be shocked to hear that most of the victims are children and the perpetrators of crimes are usually uncles or cousins within the family and children dont tell you because of the stigma this thing carry in the society. So the problem is intricate and it must be solved in very meticulous manner. The definition of morality and the matter of honor and respect must be taught in our homes in a different manner. We should tell our people that we should give the same respect to every women what we want to give to our mothers and sisters and to our wives.
Also our people should stop fantasizing about rape as according to Google stats Pakistan and India are the world leaders to search for clips of rapes and forced sex online.
The capital punishment will not do the trick in my view as we are human beings and in my view there must be a difference in animals and human beings and human beings could be tamed mentally rather than physically as some people are suggesting overtime.
The ratio of men to women in India is very high due to the killings of girls when they r born or even before they are born. Atleast hanging and killing them would solve that problem. We need to instil fear in the mind of a potential rapist. Men think they can get away with rape in this society. They don't have fear. You need fear as well when structuring a society. In the U.S there is high gender equality, abundant availability of porn, strip clubs but still there are numerous cases of rapes and even rapes in colleges. It's not just about gender equality.