Role of government in curbing crimes against women and children

Nations are born out of fear, nurtured in fear and sustained by fear. Fear, not in its absolute sense; but when people realise that this is a frightening little world to go alone, they form societies, which in turn give shapes to nations. The very concept of nationhood germinates from the protection and safety of its citizens; be it the majority or the minority. When the same fear comes back to haunt some people of the same society from their own counterparts that’s when we must realise that we have failed as a nation. The Delhi rape case reaffirms that notion.

Whenever there are two sections in the society, the majority or the more powerful section would always try to suppress the other. This is the basis of most crimes. The Indian society as we see today is a largely patriarchal model with men wielding power in all the major fields. We treat Goddess Durga as the deity of power but we don’t empower the Durgas in our society. In our very culture, the daughter is seen as a liability, which the family is happy to be relieved of, even at an ungainly rate (dowry). The society must realise that women are equal participants as well as contributors in the evolution of a society. In the Indian society the women have been suppressed for so long that they have almost forgotten the fact that they stand equal to the men in every aspect of life. This realization cannot just come from within. The women must be empowered; by educating them, by providing them with equal job opportunities and even providing reservation if necessary to undo what’s been done since ages.

When we talk about a change in the society, the government has to be the change agent. For addressing the problem of crimes against women and children, the govt can use a three pronged strategy of empowerment, awareness and a tightened judiciary. The global inequality ratio in India stands at 129th in a survey of 146 nations. The women in the society must be provided an equal status as per our fundamental rights to equality and freedom. The women reservation bill in the parliament and reservation in various fields along with a reduction of fees for the girls in the govt institutes is a positive step. When the women are educated and aware of their rights and status, then slowly but surely they would find their much deserved place in the society.

Though sometimes it gets unnoticed, but the crimes against children have always been an issue of great concern. A crime as heinous as this leaves an impressionable mind traumatized forever. Most of these crimes are committed by people close to the children and the child is afraid to raise his voice against a family member or a close family friend. Also, many a time, the child does not understand the very nature of the crime. The government must focus on awareness campaigns to make the children understand and express if any such wrongdoing is been done with them. Through the medium of interactive advertisements in various channels, such as cartoon channels, the kids must be taught the difference between a good touch and a bad touch. There should be compulsory courses in the school which make children aware of their own body and various issues like puberty, hormonal changes etc. Sex education may be a viable step in that direction.

The abovementioned solutions have a long term outlook. In the meantime, what the govt must focus on is to strengthen the judiciary with stricter laws, efficient enforcement and faster results. The system should be more sensitive as the victim, who has had a traumatic experience, scarcely needs to be reminded of it. “Don’t tell us that you didn’t enjoy it”, is what rape victims frequently gather as their first words from the police. The govt should from quick relief mechanisms for sexual abuse victims with psychologists assisting the police and the medical team. In most rape cases it is essential to have a medical examination in 24 hours from the incident, to ascertain the statement of the victim. This, however embarrassing for a victim, is an essential requirement for law to take its course. The medical and the police team must be trained to understand the sensitivity of the issue and to provide moral courage to the victim.

The laws in India are discriminatory in nature. For example, according to Section 155(4) of Indian Evidence Act, "When a man is prosecuted for rape or an attempt to ravish, it may be shown that the prosecutrix (victim) was of generally immoral character." Section 54 of Indian Evidence Act says, "In criminal proceedings (including rape) the fact that the accused person has a bad character is irrelevant, unless evidence has been given (by him) that he has a good character, in which case it becomes relevant. The term ‘immoral character’ is too subjective to alter the result, but the Indian constitution holds the right to decrease the sentence of a victim based on the same.

There are a few points in the law, which are open to debate. Sexual intercourse by a man with his wife, where the wife is over 15 years of age, is not rape. Also, as seen in the Delhi rape case a juvenile is treated differently even in the occurrence of such heinous crime. The ordinance passed after Justice Verma report is a positive step which increased the sentence to death penalty but it again turned blind eye to issues like juvenile crimes. The govt needs to take quick actions on strengthening the judiciary. Fast track courts must be started to expedite the process. The year-on-year data must be analysed and the progress tracked. The govt officials should be held accountable if the cases go beyond the stipulated time-frame. A multidimensional, multi-pronged strategy would go a long way in serving the women and the children.