We may have become a liberal society over the years, but women can't escape being groped on the streets and elsewhere. Eve-teasing is a reality that refuses to go away as actress Gul Panag found out when she was manhandled during the Delhi Marathon.
Not long ago, Miss India contestants Priyanka Shah and Ruhi Chaturvedi were harassed by men who entered their train compartment as they travelled from Ludhiana to Delhi. Again, a 30-year-old from Manipur was picked up by four drunk men near Dhaula Kuan in Delhi and raped for over 40 minutes in a moving vehicle.
Kalpana Vishwanath, coordinator, Jagori finds the term eve-teasing a trivialisation and prefers to call it sexual harassment. "The onus of protecting herself rests on the woman. We want to change that. Women have the right to be out at any time of the night and feel safe."
She adds, "There's still a lot of objectification of women in the media. To sell a car, you have a woman standing next to it. The patriarchal system is strong and while there's a change in certain strata, there's also a backlash from men. For instance, they have been barging into the women's section of the metro asking, 'Why do you want privilege?'"
On the impact of eveteasing, Anand Pawar, executive director, NGO Samyak says, "Many times, the education of a girl is discontinued if she reports the incident to her parents. Many girls are married off without their consent to protect 'family honour'. If a young woman doesn't respond positively, she is harassed or made badnaam by various means, including fake social networking profiles." Samyak, a Pune-based communication and resource centre, has launched a campaign for Safe Pune for Women and Girls and is also sensitising men on the issue.
A new study from University of Connecticut researchers Stephenie Chaudoir and Diane Quinn suggests that if women have been subjected to sexist behaviour that can harm them, they're going to be on high alert in the future from other men. Says Chaudoir, "For men who are doing nothing wrong, these (harassers) may be shaping the ways that they're being perceived as well."
In a recent study involving Russia, Argentina, Tanzania and Delhi, over 80 per cent equated being a woman with a feeling of vulnerability. The United Nations Development Fund For Women (UNIFEM) recently launched the Safe Cities programme in collaboration with the NGO Jagori and the Delhi Government. In a study, they found that roadsides and public transport are the most vulnerable places where women face the highest risk of sexual harassment. Out of 3,813 women surveyed in Delhi, 70 per cent reported that they avoided going to secluded places, another 50 per cent keep away from crowded places, while 43.5 per cent avoid wearing 'certain kinds' of clothing; 40 per cent avoid going out alone after dark. Physical harassment is highest among school students (41 per cent). At around 51 per cent, stalking is highest among college students. And only 0.8 per cent women approached the police to report the harassment.
Says women's rights activist Madhu Kishwar, "Eve-teasing is the result of an unstable society, which lacks shared values. It's mostly done by men who know they can get away with it. Try doing it in a village and the whole community will be up in arms against the perpetrator of the crime. Also, our films show the hero teasing the girl to win her over, hinting that the girl secretly likes it."
Madhu also disapproves of girls dressing provocatively, "Look at what they wear — the clothes scream, 'Notice me'."
Most women across India have built-in defence mechanisms to counter eve-teasing. While many take radio cabs at night, some carry pepper spray to counter an attacker. A journalist remembers bikers following her for 30 minutes as she drove home from a late-night assignment, commenting, "Where are you going alone? Take us with you." Another girl recalls making a close escape from the driver of an auto who tried to get physically abusive in an isolated spot in an upmarket part of Delhi. Such incidents can mean long-term trauma for a victim. Says psychologist Rajiv Mehta, "Anxiety and depression is common. It can put a person off sex or the opposite sex in future. It also erodes self-confidence."
As for the law, though the Indian Penal Code does not define the word eve-teasing, there are three sections which deal with the crime — Sections 509, 294 and 354. Explains lawyer Deepak Miglani, "These sections make gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman or acts that intrude upon her privacy a crime. The provisions under these sections and the procedural laws are complex and the type of proof that is required makes it very difficult to get the culprit punished."
Till society wakes up, women have to continue relying on themselves to stay safe in public spaces!
Not long ago, Miss India contestants Priyanka Shah and Ruhi Chaturvedi were harassed by men who entered their train compartment as they travelled from Ludhiana to Delhi. Again, a 30-year-old from Manipur was picked up by four drunk men near Dhaula Kuan in Delhi and raped for over 40 minutes in a moving vehicle.
Kalpana Vishwanath, coordinator, Jagori finds the term eve-teasing a trivialisation and prefers to call it sexual harassment. "The onus of protecting herself rests on the woman. We want to change that. Women have the right to be out at any time of the night and feel safe."
She adds, "There's still a lot of objectification of women in the media. To sell a car, you have a woman standing next to it. The patriarchal system is strong and while there's a change in certain strata, there's also a backlash from men. For instance, they have been barging into the women's section of the metro asking, 'Why do you want privilege?'"
On the impact of eveteasing, Anand Pawar, executive director, NGO Samyak says, "Many times, the education of a girl is discontinued if she reports the incident to her parents. Many girls are married off without their consent to protect 'family honour'. If a young woman doesn't respond positively, she is harassed or made badnaam by various means, including fake social networking profiles." Samyak, a Pune-based communication and resource centre, has launched a campaign for Safe Pune for Women and Girls and is also sensitising men on the issue.
A new study from University of Connecticut researchers Stephenie Chaudoir and Diane Quinn suggests that if women have been subjected to sexist behaviour that can harm them, they're going to be on high alert in the future from other men. Says Chaudoir, "For men who are doing nothing wrong, these (harassers) may be shaping the ways that they're being perceived as well."
In a recent study involving Russia, Argentina, Tanzania and Delhi, over 80 per cent equated being a woman with a feeling of vulnerability. The United Nations Development Fund For Women (UNIFEM) recently launched the Safe Cities programme in collaboration with the NGO Jagori and the Delhi Government. In a study, they found that roadsides and public transport are the most vulnerable places where women face the highest risk of sexual harassment. Out of 3,813 women surveyed in Delhi, 70 per cent reported that they avoided going to secluded places, another 50 per cent keep away from crowded places, while 43.5 per cent avoid wearing 'certain kinds' of clothing; 40 per cent avoid going out alone after dark. Physical harassment is highest among school students (41 per cent). At around 51 per cent, stalking is highest among college students. And only 0.8 per cent women approached the police to report the harassment.
Says women's rights activist Madhu Kishwar, "Eve-teasing is the result of an unstable society, which lacks shared values. It's mostly done by men who know they can get away with it. Try doing it in a village and the whole community will be up in arms against the perpetrator of the crime. Also, our films show the hero teasing the girl to win her over, hinting that the girl secretly likes it."
Madhu also disapproves of girls dressing provocatively, "Look at what they wear — the clothes scream, 'Notice me'."
Most women across India have built-in defence mechanisms to counter eve-teasing. While many take radio cabs at night, some carry pepper spray to counter an attacker. A journalist remembers bikers following her for 30 minutes as she drove home from a late-night assignment, commenting, "Where are you going alone? Take us with you." Another girl recalls making a close escape from the driver of an auto who tried to get physically abusive in an isolated spot in an upmarket part of Delhi. Such incidents can mean long-term trauma for a victim. Says psychologist Rajiv Mehta, "Anxiety and depression is common. It can put a person off sex or the opposite sex in future. It also erodes self-confidence."
As for the law, though the Indian Penal Code does not define the word eve-teasing, there are three sections which deal with the crime — Sections 509, 294 and 354. Explains lawyer Deepak Miglani, "These sections make gestures or acts intended to insult the modesty of a woman or acts that intrude upon her privacy a crime. The provisions under these sections and the procedural laws are complex and the type of proof that is required makes it very difficult to get the culprit punished."
Till society wakes up, women have to continue relying on themselves to stay safe in public spaces!
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