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| Sunday, 6 March 2005 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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March 8 is International Women's Day : Time to get on the offensive by Rikaza Hassan They come in all sizes tall, thin, dwarf, chubby. They come in all forms:
businessmen, labourers, white collar workers, the unemployed. And they come
in all ages: school kids, grandfathers and middle aged
Almost all females who have used public transport to get about have come across them, either as victims or as witnesses to an assault on another female. The victimised are as diverse as the perverts themselves; the little child holding her mother's hand, the young woman going to college, the mother coming home from grocery shopping and even the grandmother on a visit to a relative. Gender seems to be the only requirement to be chosen for a session of sexual abuse. As for the argument that these victims dress provocatively and hence are to blame, firstly no matter how short the skirt or how low the neckline, it is still not justified to sexually assault these women. Secondly this argument holds no water. After speaking to a wide range of females from across society who use public transport, it was clear that what you wear has no bearing in safeguarding or further exposing you to such sexual assaults. Even a woman in the long abaya with only her face to be seen is not safe from the clutches of these sick animals. The techniques of assault are as numerous as they are innovative. They have an amazing ability to improvise to suit the occasion. While some stick to touching or feeling your body, others specialise in groping inside your clothes while yet others grind on to your shoulders or buttocks. They travel in both crowded and half empty buses at all times of the day though most assaults occur at school and office rush hours in the mornings and evenings. After all, to most of these perverts, this is just a daily exercise to engage in, while travelling to and from work or school. The worst part of this horror is that while these hapless women are forced to undergo the degradations, the people around them turn a blind eye. I am yet to see or at least hear of a man or woman telling one of these debased individuals off. In a traditional society where women are viewed as being weak and needing protection, at such times the apparently stronger males who otherwise take full advantage of their position of being on a higher pedestal suddenly turn mute, deaf and blind. Even mothers turn away and pretend not to see as a girl in school uniform who could easily be their daughter, is caught in some pervert's hands. It is high time that women took definitive action against these monsters in human guise. We must not be afraid to report these people to the police and we must not stay silent when we see a fellow human being being sexually assaulted. Usually all these victims need is a little push, a show of solidarity and support to break free of the fear that engulfs them and to speak out against the assaults on them. Little girls should be told to beware of these corrupted individuals and not be afraid to ask for help in getting out these frightening situations just as they are told not to take rides from strangers. The best defence against these malefactors, as they say, is to go on the offensive. Women only buses and train compartments should be re-introduced in sufficient numbers, at least during rush hours. The police should have women police constables patrolling the buses and trains in civil and uniform to apprehend and hence discourage these vulgar acts from taking place. They should also set up a special complaints desk for assaults on women with a friendly constable to lend a sympathetic ear to the victims' grievances and advice them on the next step to be taken. More stringent punishment and fines could be introduced. The most important measure that should be taken is to educate the females of the general public that it is not a shame, nor their fault, to have been randomly preyed on, to not hide what happened to them and be silent but to come out in to the open and demand justice for the indignities suffered. To commit such dastardly acts against the woman, in whose womb new life grows until it is ready to comeforth into this world, is indeed despicable. In a country of four main religions, all of which honour and esteem the mother, it is sacrilegious that it is the female that is so exploited in this way and then left alone to deal with the emotional trauma that ensues. As the Buddhist saying goes, Gedara Budun Amma (mother is the most respected at home), so is it not time that we took positive action to help protect the women of our country? |
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fathers. A
cross-section of society from a diverse range of environments, they share
three common characteristics; they're male, they use public transportation
and they view the female body as an object designed specifically for their
enjoyment. What am I going on about? It's the ever-present perverts, of
course? 
