In 2012, an Indian medical student on her way back from watching a film with a male friend was gangraped by six men on a moving bus before being thrown out and left for dead. The case shocked global audiences and was followed by a very large protest movement in India. The Indian Police were eventually able to track down the perpetrators, who were eventually convicted by a court. The perpetrators all received the death penalty, except for one of them who was a juvenile at the time of the rape and as such was given three years in prison.
In 2015, the BBC produced a documentary on the rape case titled India's daughters. In the interview, the BBC recreated the scene of the rape and interviewed one of the convicts, Mukesh who was still on death row pending an appeal of the original death sentence at the supreme court. Perhaps what was most shocking about the documentary was not the image of rape or the teary-eyed testament of the victim's parents but the reaction of the perpetrator, Mukesh. Seemigly unrepentant, Mukesh refused to show any remorse or guilt for what he had done. Rather, he implied he and his co-perpetrators were simply enforcing their own version of social justice because according to him: The girl should not have fought back. She should not have been out with a strange boy at that time of night.
The Indian Government obtained a court injunction that stopped the documentary or any part of it from being broadcast in India, an injunction which both BBC and Youtube have said they will comply with. Ironically, perhaps because of the ban, the video was uploaded to various media sharing sites and went viral. The Producer, Leslee Udwin challenged the ruling, pointing out she had sought the necessary permissions at all stages of the documentary before it was filmed. Nonetheless, the Indian Government is determined to stick to its guns. For the time being, the documentary is not likely to be broadcast in India.
I felt disheartened when I learnt of the moves to ban broadcast by the Indian Government. One would think, given the current atmosphere where more Indians are standing up to end cultural practices that promote violence against women, the video could have served as a reflection piece for at the very least that segment of India which has access to satellite tv and internet connection.
The video is by no means perfect. In some scenes, it comes across as slightly patronising. It is very easy to portray as Good Western activist versus nasty Indian Government. I abhor the crime of rape and believe all effort should be made to promote greater understanding of the problems faced by women in India. However, I can also understand why the Indian Government was quick to censor what can in a certain light be viewed as very bad publicity. Governments worldwide are wary of public relations damages and while censoring the video may seem a heavy hand, the Indian Government has acted like many other Governments, including those in the West would have done if they felt their image was about to receive a relentless battering.
A closer look at the profile of the perpetrators points to what may represent a systemic problem in a certain segment of Indian society. They were all from poor backgrounds and had received very little or no education. They had been raised in a system of patriarchy that made it seem right for them to dispense their own version of jungle justice on an innocent girl whose dreams and aspirations they did not know. I know certain audiences from other parts of the world will view the video and come to the conclusion that the whole of India is an unsafe place for women. They should take note that the most virulent of protests against the heinous crime came from within India.
There is a need to reach out to the poorest in Indian society and offer them viable chances at escaping the vicious cycle of illiteracy and poverty. Only by educating them on the laws of their country as well as the modern world can we hope to avoid a situation where girls no longer feel safe to walk the streets. The more difficult part will be engaging people on a respectful basis on cultural practices that they grew up with and have accepted as the norm. Those can be very difficult to change, even with education. One of the lawyers who defended the perpetrators, claimed if his daughter had acted the way the victim had, he would have set her on fire himself. Obviously, ingrained culture can be difficult to erase even with a decent education.
I am sure this is a topic that will evoke strong responses from many people, especially women because they are often the victims of rape around the world. However, if we are planning to challenge the culture of patriarchy around the world, we should also challenge the culture of the objectification of the female body in western societies. Both contribute to maintaining a culture of rape because as long as the female is viewed either as a subhuman or an object for sexual gratification, there will be those who will try to justify the culture of rape.
Leslee Udwin, by producing this video may have simply touched the tip of the iceberg. I am sure there will be many conversations about the culture of rape, dignity and female rights in many countries around the world thanks to her documentary.
No comments:
Post a Comment