Nameless, her ordeal continues to ramp up the debate and anger of the treatment of women in India. When this young medical student went out of her home that day, she most certainly would not have thought that she would be attacked and ravaged by strangers.
The brutality of the attack is unimaginable.
Some reports say the men forced an iron rod up her vagina. While another, like the one below, says one of the perps used his hand to pull her uterus out. The truth is to be verified.
 |
| unverified but imagine the horror |
Regardless, an invasion is an invasion. And the depth and severity should never be a factor. No one should be allowed to steal another's right of control over his or her privacy and being.
Right after her death in Singapore, people in India took their grief to the streets. CNN was there to cover it. People were speaking about changing archaic laws and to expedite the processing of the case. In a way, the court of public opinion has already condemned those accused without trial.
One soundbite was very telling about what was really happening in India.
A young man said that when the news broke, the response from the police and politicians was inappropriate and diminished the case for what it truly was. If this can be interpreted, public anger seemed more pitted against this than the actual case itself.
Of course, nothing happens from a one off incident. And certainly Indians must have faced this enough times to feel that change is needed. But just like the recent shooting in Newtown, CT, it just takes that one especially significant and/or brutal case to tip the balance. What really drove the engines of revolution though, is the attitude from the status quo.
The NRA in the US have been defiant about accepting any gun laws. The legislators and government officials in India have been apathetic, not just to this case, but to the many that have gone under the media radar.
CNN reported (as a side bar) the story of 17 year old that committed suicide after being gang raped. What they did not say was that even after reporting the crime to the police, the girl was told to accept it and marry her attacker.
Certainly, this isn't the first time that the police in India have failed its people. There was a previous case of a young girl who went to the police to report that she had been raped, only to be raped again by the officer she went to for help. And who can forget the Mumbai terrorist attacks, where officers with guns were seen in CCTV footage to be fleeing from the scene, leaving behind defenseless women and children to face the gunmen.
The question that faces India is the same that the US now has to answer. Can it change?
I am not an expert in Indian politics, society or economics. But I do have an opinion, one culled from listening to the people, and observing everyday life from both sides of the coin.
And my opinion is no.
India is controlled on all levels, by family dynasties. These families perpetuate the glass ceiling so that it becomes really tough, if not impossible, for anyone to break their social strata. And they use their political and industrial connection to make sure the legislation protects their interests.
What does this mean for the girl who goes out to watch a movie with her boyfriend and decides to bus it back home?
Nothing good.
Corruption is still rampant, and the trickle down effect means that public service is confused with self service. The questions of human rights, morality and ethics just don't bear as much weight when people are allowed to choose who these are accorded to.
The 17 year old did not come from a Bachan, Ambani, or Khan background. And her story almost disappeared deep into the bureaucracy. Imagine if she was someone with stature.
Acting legend Amitabh Bachan, who is treated like a God in India, famously sent out tweets to register his disgust with the rape. And I am sure there are others with status who are equally shocked. The odd thing is though, with all their influence, and all their political connections, what have they done to exact change?
You must know that this is a country that allowed actors to go hunting endangered animals in reserves, and that let famous people who were in a hit and run to get off easy.
As my ex-client once told me, if there aren't any poor people, who would be his servants? He is, by the way, part of a family dynasty. The attitude is common among the 'haves'.
From the reports that are slowing coming out, the 23 year old medical student was not rich by any means. But neither was her life cheap. She deserved better.
India has a long way to go if the rich, the influential, and the powerful do not make honest inroads into social change. If they don't, then the death of this girl and many others before her, would be in vain.
No comments:
Post a Comment