These days, crimes against women pose a huge challenge to the nation as well as society. It has become quite normal to start our day with the news of some heinous crime committed against women, child or sometimes even a toddler. And the very fact, that we tend to nonchalantly switch our channels or turn the page when we come across such incidents, is perturbing.
Crimes against women are rampant in all societies throughout the world. Violence is seen in different forms and its place of occurrence may extend from home to the community and beyond to the state machinery. Crimes against women are also a gender-based problem. It is deeply rooted in the global culture of discrimination which denies equality between men and women and legitimizes male domination and subordination of women.
As recognized in the United Nations (UN) General Assembly’s 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women, violence against women “is a manifestation of historically unequal power relations between men and women, which has led to domination over and discrimination against women by men and to the prevention of the full advancement of women, and that it is one of the crucial social mechanisms by which women are forced into a subordinate position compared with me”.
How Safe Women Are in Assam?
The answer is quite disturbing, as there is no sign of decline in crime against women in Assam. Instead, according to the government data of 2018, the number of cases of crime against women has been steadily increasing over the last two years.
As per the data released by the Govt of Assam, 29,223 incidents of violence against women were reported from various parts of the state from 2016 to 2018. Where, 8,771 cases of physical assault, 1,552 rapes & 4,794 incidents of kidnapping were registered with the police in fiscal 2016-17. As per the report concerns, till January 6, 2018, complaints have been filed for 8,335 physical assault cases, 1,457 rape incidents & 4,314 kidnappings in the state. Altogether 1,786 people have been arrested in the 3,009 rape cases filed since April 2016.
As per the latest data of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), Assam has recorded the second highest crime rate against women in India in the year 2016. Among states, crimes against women were reported to be highest in Delhi (160.4 crimes against a population of one lakh), followed by Assam (131.3 crimes) and Odisha (84.5). Nagaland has recorded the lowest rate of crimes against women in the country (9.2 crimes) ranking 36th in the table, where only 53% charge-sheeted.
How Can We Stop Violence Against Women ??
However, I believe, there are certain steps that we can take in order to reduce the intensity of such crimes.
- Break the silence and always raise your voice against any sort of violence against any woman.
- Gain the basic awareness of the laws, so that you are able to recognize the nature of violence/crime and figure out the solution accordingly.
- Get in touch with local women’s rights groups if you hear of any such incident, or if you wish to attend or organize pieces of training on violence against women.
- Within an institution or organization, you have a right to find out the processes in place to combat sexual harassment.
- To reduce the violence or crime against women in the workplace, you have a right to know whether your office or college has a department against sexual harassment, if not, then you have the right to demand the same.
- Women and girls need to be empowered, and if possible should learn some self-defense techniques.
- Spreading awareness in society to change the mindset of people so that they understand that a woman is not an object but as much a human being as a man.
- We also need to understand that if a woman gets harassed then the shame should befall on the perpetrator instead of her.
- Social norms and traditions should not in any way abridge the rights of women.
- A woman deserves the right to live a fearless and dignified life, and as a society, we are obliged to ensure the same.
- Education is the key to women’s holistic empowerment, and the government should make constant endeavors to ensure that women irrespective of their ages get easy access to opportunities and resources.
There are lots of laws and provisions to safeguard the rights of women and reduce the rate of crimes committed against them. The system just needs to implement them properly to fight against this evil plaguing our society. The government needs to strengthen the laws that are already in place and enforce them in a stringent manner. The police needs to be sensitized in handling cases of crimes against women and children. Moreover, a separate cell for women should be set up at least in every district headquarters and helpline numbers should be active 24/7.
It’s also true that crimes against women can’t be stopped in one fine day, and can only be phased gradually. However, there is an urgent need for women to be empowered in order to understand their rights and fight against the discrimination meted out to them by society.