By TCN News
New York: The death on December 29, 2012, of a 23-year-old student who was gang raped and assaulted should spur decisive action by the Indian government to combat sexual violence, Human Rights Watch said today. The attack catalyzed massive nationwide demonstrations and reopened public debate about reforming India’s inadequate laws and practices concerning sexual assault.
“This murderous gang rape is a sobering reminder of the pervasive sexual violence that women and girls across India suffer,” saidMeenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “The government needs to act now to prevent sexual assault, aggressively investigate and prosecute perpetrators, and ensure the dignified treatment of survivors.”
The New Delhi gang rape highlighted the widespread problem of sexual violence in India, Human Rights Watch said. According to the National Crime Records Bureau, 24,206 rape cases were registered in India in 2011, and experts say the number of unreported cases of sexual assault is much higher.
Following the New Delhi attack, the Indian central government formed a three-member commission headed by former Indian Supreme Court Chief Justice Jagdish Sharan Verma, to “review[] the present laws so as to provide speedier justice and enhanced punishment in cases of aggravated sexual assault.” While the government’s swift action to create a commission to review punishment for aggravated sexual assault is an important step, reform of the criminal law and procedure, plus improved treatment of survivors, is needed to ensure justice for sexual assault victims, Human Rights Watch said.
Strengthen Mechanisms to Implement Laws and Support Survivors
In May 2012, about 90 civil society organizations and individuals, including Human Rights Watch, wrote to Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh urging reforms in responses to sexual assault and calling for greater police accountability. The groups called on the Indian central government to constitute a high-level task force to develop a coordinated response to gender-based violence, especially sexual assault; instruct state governments to monitor police handling of sexual assault reports and investigations, and hold accountable officers who mishandle their duties; and fund an existing scheme for financial assistance for rape victims and monitor its implementation.
Human Rights Watch research has found that survivors usually find it difficult to register police complaints, and often go from one hospital to another even for a medical examination, and often report suffering humiliation at police stations and hospitals.
India does not have a uniform protocol for medical treatment and examination of survivors of sexual assault, making responses ad hoc and unpredictable, and in the worst cases, degrading and counter-productive. This is reflected in the continued use of the so-called “finger test,” which Human Rights Watch documented in a 2010 report. While conducting medical examinations, many doctors record unscientific and degrading findings, which involve noting the “laxity” of the vagina or hymen, apparently to determine whether the victims are “virgins” or “habituated to sexual intercourse.” Often doctors, police, and judges look for evidence of “struggle” or “injuries,” especially hymenal injuries, in the medical examination report, discrediting those who do not report such injuries.
The Indian government should establish national standards and a uniform protocol for the medical treatment and collection of medical evidence in cases of sexual assault, and to eliminate the use of finger tests on sexual assault survivors, Human Rights Watch said.
Urgent Need for Comprehensive Law Reform on Sexual Assault
Indian civil society organizations have long called for laws on sexual assault to be reformed. Under current criminal law, India does not have a general definition of sexual assault. It only defines rape (penile penetration), “outraging the modesty” of women, and “insulting the modesty” of women. Indian law does not recognize the offense of marital rape.
The Armed Forces Special Powers Act provides effective immunity to members of the armed forces who are accused of sexual assault and other abuses. Section 197 of the Criminal Procedure Code provides effective immunity to police and other security forces by making it mandatory for a prosecutor to obtain permission from the government to initiate criminal proceedings against public servants.
“Law reform efforts should be comprehensive and minimize the risks and delays that sexual assault survivors now endure,” Ganguly said. “Police officers, soldiers, politicians, and civil servants should not be above the law for sexual assault or anything else.”
Death Penalty Not the Solution
“For politicians, supporting the death penalty is an easy but ineffectual way out,” Ganguly said. “It is much harder, but more effective, to revamp the response of police, doctors, forensic specialists, prosecutors, and judges to sexual violence. Survivors deserve an effective, coordinated response to sexual assault.”