Sunday, January 6, 2013

??

Question mark coz am not sure of what to feel… Sad with the current state of our nation with rising number of crime against women; happy that Nirbhaya, as we call her, has left for a better world; angry with amazing statements given by some of the ‘leaders’ of the nation showing off how high they think about women; confused about whom to believe; thankful that am safe till now or insecure about my future life??

I have also travelled in buses and my criteria of boarding a bus, if I am late, was that there are few passengers in there. But now, guess, I should look for 3:1 ratio of women:men to board a bus. Today, I read in paper about Pondicherry government thinking about making overcoat compulsory for female students!!! I mean, what are they trying to prove? Which era are we living in? We are happy with MNCs coming to our country who bring lot of money with them but are not ready to adopt the culture of equality among genders. How can a school girl in a skirt ‘provoke’ men to rape her? It’s not about who wears what, it’s about who thinks about what… They say that girls wear provocative cloths and that is what makes men rape them. Excuse me… What would they say about a 45-year old man rape his 65-year old retired school teacher aunt? Was that lady wearing skirts?? I bet not. Agreed that there are cases where females act irresponsibly (considering the time and place they live in), but please don’t blame women for rape…

It’s about the upbringing. If a child sees his father treating his mother or sister like maids, he will be brought up with that mindset – females are just servants. Fortunately, I am part of families where my father helps my mother in kitchen and so does my brother, where my mother’s views are sought for, where daughters are encouraged to study and work and daughter-in-laws are not treated lesser than daughters. And yes, everyone know their limits and culture and know how to maintain a balance between new ideas and old idealogies. That’s the upbringing of our families…

And those who say that females are made to stay indoors (that’s their ‘maryada’ as ‘Sita’), can I infer that men will always be Raavan?? Can’t they change themselves to better person and make this place safer and cleaner?? I mean, on one hand you bow down your head in front of goddesses and on the other hand you don’t realize that goddesses are also females??!!! You can respect an idol but cannot respect its living avatar….

When I saw the 2nd episode of Satyamev Jayate, I was heartbroken. Again, they say, females should do this, do that and be within limits, what would they say of animals who sexually abuse kids… boy or girl?? Were they wearing or acting provocatively? NO. Those animals are mentally sick.

Read in an article online where the writer stressed that punishing the culprits will not solve the problem, it’s the change of mindset which would give justice to all the victims. Agreed. But to add on, government should please prosecute some of the accused quickly and publicize their executions so that another animal waiting for its prey should think 10 times before committing the crime. If caught, I could be punished AND YES, ACTUALLY PUNISHED. What do we keep on waiting for? Why do these criminals have to be fed in jails for so many years? They know that they would keep on going and appealing in numerous courts, then eventually get sentenced and live long in those jails. If God forbid, government wakes up to actually execute them, their families would appeal to President on the grounds that they have already been through lot of punishment.

Who will teach policemen? Who would teach us? As stated by Nirbhaya’s friend, so many auto-wallas and bikers and cars slowed down but did not help them. Shamelessly, I think even I would have acted the same way because I don’t know if those asking for help genuinely need help or it’s a trap to mug me. But a profusely bleeding girl could have melted someone??

So, who needs to change? Police, government, men at large and all of us. Teach your kids to respect all. Men, please don’t show your dominance. Everyone has a major role to play in this world. We cannot do what you can and in the same way, you cannot do what we can. Please make it a safer place to live in….