Authorities in India have charged five men with kidnapping, gang-raping and murdering a woman in Delhi on December 16th. (The woman died later.) Thousands of women in the nation have marched to protest against the rape in particular, and against sexism in general. Sheila Dikshit, the Chief Minister of Delhi, joined the protesters and demanded strong laws against rape. Shahsi Tharoor, Junior Education Minister of India, advocates naming a new anti-rape law after the victim. Some politicians are demanding the death penalty and chemical castration for rapists.
According to police, the men raped the woman for about an hour and beat her and her friend with iron bars. The men then threw the woman out of a moving bus and into the street. The bus driver allegedly tried to run over the woman.
Leaders in Delhi are bringing forth an increased nightly police presence, examination of bus drivers and their assistants, and an end to buses with tinted windows and curtains. Moreover, there is now a committee set up to call for changes in the current law against rape, and there is a telephone helpline to police stations throughout the city for women who are being sexually assaulted.
On the heels of this gang rape in India, a Saudi religious leader has called for the gang rape of Syrian girls and women. Muhammad al-Arifi, has issued a fatwa stating that the “intercourse marriages” last a mere few hours “in order to give each fighter a turn.” The cleric is concerned that rebel soldiers in Syria might be growing tired due to a lack of sexual enjoyment. The fatwa declared that girls over the age of 14 are fair game, as long as they are widowed or divorced.
All good people must condemn these obvious examples of reprehensible misogyny that have occurred outside of the Western world. However, while it is true that some parts of the world are far more sexist than others, sexism continues to be a worldwide problem. Official figures reveal that every 14 hours a woman is raped in Delhi. Furthermore, Indian women say they often experience sexual threats and violence. (Indian police forced one teen rape victim to marry one of her attackers, and she recently committed suicide.) Yet, in the U.S., many girls and women make similar claims of sexual intimidation and violence. African American girls and women report sexual abuse far more than any other group in the U.S.
ISHV applauds the measures that Indian authorities are making in regard to women’s safety. However, violence against women is a societal problem and all members of society must work to combat it. Much of this violence stems from men’s fear of equal opportunity between the sexes. Governments, law enforcement agencies, educational institutions, the media, parents, friends, siblings - everyone - must work to see that women are not considered to be second-class citizens. We must all work to bring about important changes in culture, religion, social systems and the law to bring about the total eradication of sexism and violence against women.