India, the ever-present threat of rape, and the right of self-defense — part 1

Indian women demanding guns for defense against rapists

Indian bus rape: Delhi sees rush for guns

Hundreds of women inquire about gun licences following woman’s murder, showing the lack of faith in law enforcement

Jason Burke in Delhi

guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 1 January 2013

[An Indian man takes part in a candle-lit vigil to mourn the death of the gang-rape victim in Delhi. Photograph: Dar Yasin/AP]

Hundreds of women in Delhi have applied for gun licences following the gang rape and murder of a 23-year-old woman by six men in a bus in the city last month.

The news underlines the widespread sense of insecurity in the city, deep before the incident and deeper now, and the lack of faith in law enforcement agencies.

The ashes of the victim of the attack – who died on Friday after 13 days in hospitals in India and Singapore, and was cremated in Delhi in a secret ceremony under heavy security on Sunday – were scattered on the surface of the Ganges river, sacred to Hindus, in northern India on Tuesday.

The case has provoked an unprecedented debate about endemic sexual harassment and violence in India. Tens of thousands have protested across the country, calling for harsher laws, better policing and a change in culture.

Politicians, initially caught off-guard, have now promised new legislation to bring in fast-track courts and harsher punishments for sexual assault. The six men accused of the attack are to be formally charged with murder later this week and potentially face execution.

Indian media are currently reporting incidents of sexual violence that would rarely gain attention previously. In the last 24 hours these have included a teenager fleeing repeated abuse by her brother, who was allegedly assaulted on a bus by a conductor, a 15-year-old held for 15 days by three men in a village in Uttar Pradesh and repeatedly assaulted, an 11-year-old allegedly raped by three teenagers in the north-eastern city of Guwahati and two cases of rape in the city of Amritsar.

One case reported on Tuesday involved a woman, also in a village in Uttar Pradesh, who suffered 90% burns after being doused in kerosene, allegedly by a man who had been stalking her for months.

There were signs that a further taboo was about to be broken when one of India’s best-known English-language television presenters asked viewers who had experienced abuse from a family member to contact her.

The rush for firearms will cause concern, however. Police in Delhi have received 274 requests for licences and 1,200 inquiries from women since 18 December, two days after the woman and a male friend were attacked in a bus cruising on busy roads between 9pm and 10pm.

“Lots of women have been contacting us asking for information about how to obtain licences. Any woman has a threat against her. It’s not surprising. There are fearless predators out there,” said Abhijeet Singh of the campaign group Guns For India.

India, the ever-present threat of rape, and the right of self-defense — part 2

[In a culture of male ‘rape entitlement’ and government’s disregard for women, knives for self-defense–Shiv Sena party began handing out the weapons to women at a function in Mumbai.  Local party official Ajay Chowdhary told supporters “the way you cut vegetables, cut the hand of the person who touches you the same way,” saying women should keep the three-inch (seven-centimetre) blades in their purses. — Frontlines ed.]

Chili powder and knives given to Mumbai women to fend off rapists

26 January, 2013

[AFP Photo / Punit Paranjpe]

The Shiv Sena party has distributed knives and chili powder to women in Mumbai to send a message to ‘eve-teasers’ after the fatal gang rape of a student in Delhi last month, which has ignited a debate on India’s appalling rise in sexual offenses.

The Shiv Sena party, an ally of the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has distributed 21,000 knives with 3-inch (7 cm) blades to women in Mumbai and its surrounding areas and plans to hand out a total of 100,000.

“This is a symbolic gesture. Its only to pass a signal to eve-teasers, anti-social elements and perpetrators of crime against women that women are empowered and can take care of themselves,” said Rahul Narvekar, a spokesman for the party. ‘Eve teasing’ is an Indian euphemism for molesting women.

“Don’t be afraid of using this knife if someone attacks you. We have set up a team of nine advocates to protect you from any potential court cases that may arise.” Ajay Chaudhari, who is running the knife campaign for Shiv Sena, was quoted as saying by the Party’s newspaper, Saamana.

India, the ever-present threat of rape, and the right of self-defense — part 3

Women Maoists pledge security to tribal girls

RANCHI: ‘Tribal girls who go to cities in search of jobs get raped in return and either come back home pregnant, or with babies and diseases,’ read a poster of the women’s wing of the CPI (Maoist) Nari Mukti Sangh (NMS), a frontal organization of the rebels. Some tribal girls are not fortunate enough to return home, instead their bodies arrive at their villages, read another poster.

The posters, recovered from Pitambar Mahato, alias Pritam alias Lambu, an aide of CPI sub-zonal commander, Kundan Pahan, said, “NMS will vow to ensure the safety of women during the International Women’s Day celebrations on March 8.” Mahato was arrested by district police on Thursday. The NMS women’s special programmes will continue till March 31 across the state. ‘If you support our movement and make it successful, it will result women emancipation,’ screamed another poster. Official figures suggest that crime against women continues to rise unchecked in Jharkhand.

According to the National Crime Records Bureau, crime against women has grown from 2,490 cases in 2002 to 3,132 cases in 2011 in the state. NMS has claimed that government has not been able to do anything to check crimes against women. The posters, which also have details of atrocities on tribal women at the hands of CRPF and district police in Chhatisgrah, have been widely circulated. ”Unless Mahila Mukti Andolan (agitation to liberate women) is intensified, women will continue to be under attack,” the posters said. It has urged tribal women, labourers, women organizations, among others to support their cause. Instead of working to ensure safety of women, the police are working to arrest our cadre members, the posters seemed to suggest.