Women and respect should be synonymous

The Justice Verma Committee is out. It has many recommendations but sends a positive vibe. The recommendations put forth are noteworthy and seems to have a solid base and worth implementing. Now the big question is – when and how. Many must have been disappointed to see the Committee does not want death penalty or chemical castration for rapists. Yet, it does put forward relevant observations.

Assaults against women are on a rise and everyday, one gets to hear reports of molestations, gangrape, murder and other atrocities committed against females. I cannot write ‘women’ here because many victims are children, as young as two. What should be done to stop these heinous crimes? Scores of committees, thousands of law and their sub sections won’t prove a deterrent. They might if there is speedy justice and harsh punishment. When will that happen? No one knows.

If one has to probe the reasons behind increasing atrocities against women, then she won’t have to go that far. There is only reason – the show of power. The assaulter is well aware that his victim will not be able to defend herself. Will he dare attack someone who might be bigger and stronger than him? He won’t. He has been brought up with the thinking that women are the inferior gender and they have to be suppressed and not respected. That is why, most of the men, won’t give up any chance to violate a woman. Activists say that gender sensitisation should be inculcated in homes so that boys grow up to understand gender equality and therein respect women.  This, they suggest, will lead to more respect towards the opposite sex. If this has to be a reality, then we will have to wait for the next generation, that is, the children who are one or two year olds to grow up. But do we have that patience to wait that long? Or should we wait and let the crimes continue? Of course, not. In such a scenario, the Verma Committee does give a few hopes. The hope that government will look at the report empathetically and will implement it soon, at least some of them, so that grave crimes like rape are rooted out from our society. Till then, let parents, teachers and each member of the society take a pledge of protecting women and girl children. The girl you might see being molested or attacked may be a stranger to you but come forward and lend a helping hand. If you won't, then, a notice of caution – the next victim can be one from your family. WE AS CITIZENS NEED TO ACT.