Woman once venerated as the mother and the perpetuating angel of mankind has come to be looked upon as ‘the unblessed creation of God’. Thanks to the traditional male dominant society who has always taught our generations that SHE is a weaker sex. We persist in our wretched belief that women are weak, helpless creatures who need constant watching by their fathers, brothers, husbands and sons at different stages of their life. The consequences of this bitter reality confront us every day in the form of crimes against women.
Today, the women are harassed, tortured and ill-treated. Rapes and murders have become common news. Eve-teasing is common, for women are considered objects of sex. Abduction and rape are everyday occurrences. Even minor girls are not spared. The cases like Guwahati molestation case and rape of a 30 year old woman in West Bengal are examples of insensitivity of government towards the victims.
Greed and sex hunger is the motive force behind the crimes against women not just in India, but round the globe. In a recent WHO study, it was revealed that 70% women in Ethiopia and 15% in Japan reported sexual violence, 28% females in Tanzania and 40% in South Africa reported that their first sexual experience was forced. One of the most hideous aspects of our Indian society is the dowry system. The lure of making easy money has led to outrageous demands for dowry. Brides are harassed and burnt alive if they do not bring sufficient dowry. Many girls commit suicide to save their parents from humiliation. Today it is possible to determine the sex of the unborn child. This has led to the abhorrent practice of female foeticide.
Equally horrific are news reports of foreign tourists being sexually assaulted. Recently an American was molested in Pushkar, a British journalist raped in Goa, Canadian girls attacked in Kumarakom to list the few instances. It looks like that India as a nation has ceased to know how to treat women as human