A safer society for women

Along with timely justice, there is a need for societal change, mediated by safer spaces and greater representation for women

Prime Minister Narendra Modi last week underlined the importance of fast-tracking the delivery of justice in cases of crimes against women, a comment that came in the backdrop of the rape and murder of a doctor in a Kolkata hospital. Speedier resolution is vital to building women's trust in the responsiveness of State mechanisms and, when this is done consistently, it could well serve as a deterrent to such crimes. Given the wide political and social support for early justice in cases of crime against women, there’s no reason why this cannot be institutionalised.

Kolkata, Sep 01 (ANI): Educationalists, actors, teachers, students, and other professionals take part in 'Maha Michil' to protest against the alleged sexual assault and murder of a postgraduate trainee doctor at RG Kar Hospital, in Kolkata on Sunday. (ANI Photo) (Shyamal Maitra)

While fast-track courts and stringent laws against crimes targeting women are important, the larger need is to curb such crimes. That needs societal change, tackling rampant misogyny propped up by a paradigm of entrenched patriarchy. The continuing protests against the grisly Kolkata rape-murder and the vocal calls for action on the Justice K Hema committee report show that the larger community is likely receptive to efforts for change. Still, it is worrying that it takes outrageous instances for society to confront the need for dismantling systems that tolerate and encourage violence against and exploitation of women.

There is also a pressing need for infrastructural and organisational solutions that create safe spaces for women — at work, on the move, and even at play (in recreational facilities such as restaurants, pubs, and gymnasiums). For instance, if the Kolkata hospital had a safe space for the resident doctor to rest, she is unlikely to have attempted to get some rest in a seminar hall.

All three can act as force multipliers. More representation for women across spheres — politics, police, judiciary, companies — is one way to do this. At a shade under 7% and 17.2%, respectively, women are severely under-represented in ministerial and parliamentary roles in the country, as per the World Economic Forum's Global Gender Gap 2024 report. At 12% currently, women's participation in the police will take close to two-and-a-half decades to reach the targeted 33%, as per the India Justice Report. The statistics are similar in other spheres too. Accelerated action here may help usher in the change so desperately needed.