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This is quite interesting to learn. Most of what I have heard about India has been through the highly publicized rape cases where women were assaulted in broad

This is quite interesting to learn. Most of what I have heard about India has been through the highly publicized rape cases where women were assaulted in broad daylight and those who assaulted them were not prosecuted

kumarvvr 6y ago
The law has teeth and that can be made to bite, if the woman is savvy enough to use it. However, knowledge and applicability of the law is not fully understood in rural areas, the ones where domestic violence is a more pressing issue. Not that urban areas have less scope of DV, but that in urban areas, there are more options to the victim and a lot less social stigma. Things are changing now. Due to prevalence of internet and penetration of mobiles and cheap smartphones into all strata of society, women are more knowledgeable than ever. Rape and sexual assaults are issues that are, in my view, a universal issue, with only change between various countries in the world being the degree of reporting and recourse. Even in that area, India is changing. Social stigma for reporting rape is very low in urban areas and rapidly reducing in rural areas. Women are more willing to report it and society is less stigmatic towards it. One of the reason why there is constant news of rape.
- onetimemanytime 6y ago
  >>However, knowledge and applicability of the law is not fully understood in rural areas, the ones where domestic violence is a more pressing issue. The fact that have no better option B might have something to do with it too. Like in western countries: sure you can arrest your scumbag husband that beats you but then what?
  - kumarvvr 6y ago
    I agree that too. Basically, it's all about the choice and circumstances the woman has and is in.
throwawaysea 6y ago
I think you have your facts wrong. There was really only one incident that reached Western news media and four men were executed for the incident (the fifth killed himself). The police identified and captured suspects almost immediately after the incident and it went to the courts right after. So I’m not sure where the claim that they weren’t prosecuted is coming from. You can view the timeline of the incident at https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/19/asia/india-rape-execution-intl-hnk/index.html https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/19/asia/india-rape-execution...
- zapdrive 6y ago
  Those protests were mostly stupid. I agree there was anger and rage, but as you mentioned the arrests were swift. The protestors were basically demanding that the suspects be hanged immediately, without due process. Which is why I called it stupid.
- kumarvvr 6y ago
  Every now and then, a crime of such magnitude happens (the woman was assaulted to such an extent that her internal organs were damaged from iron rods inserted into her vagina, which speaks to more of cruelty and inhumanity, than the need for sexual gratification) that it captures the news cycle. This is the reason the case was quickly solved (quickly as in about 5 years) But there are many rapes, that are not reported, or if reported, the victim seldom gets justice because of dragging in courts, etc. And, in any judicial system, solid evidence is required, so rape of a woman in a field, at night, where she might not even remember the faces of her assaulters, might not have enough evidence, apart from circumstantial ones (in cases where the assaulters escaped), leading to no justice to her.
  - spoonjim 6y ago
    The scary thing is that the main perpetrator of that rape/murder was 17 years old and under Indian law couldn’t even be sentenced to a long prison term. He’s out and his name is unknown.
    - 6y ago

kumarvvr 6y ago

The law has teeth and that can be made to bite, if the woman is savvy enough to use it. However, knowledge and applicability of the law is not fully understood in rural areas, the ones where domestic violence is a more pressing issue. Not that urban areas have less scope of DV, but that in urban areas, there are more options to the victim and a lot less social stigma. Things are changing now. Due to prevalence of internet and penetration of mobiles and cheap smartphones into all strata of society, women are more knowledgeable than ever. Rape and sexual assaults are issues that are, in my view, a universal issue, with only change between various countries in the world being the degree of reporting and recourse. Even in that area, India is changing. Social stigma for reporting rape is very low in urban areas and rapidly reducing in rural areas. Women are more willing to report it and society is less stigmatic towards it. One of the reason why there is constant news of rape.

onetimemanytime 6y ago
>>However, knowledge and applicability of the law is not fully understood in rural areas, the ones where domestic violence is a more pressing issue. The fact that have no better option B might have something to do with it too. Like in western countries: sure you can arrest your scumbag husband that beats you but then what?
- kumarvvr 6y ago
  I agree that too. Basically, it's all about the choice and circumstances the woman has and is in.

throwawaysea 6y ago

I think you have your facts wrong. There was really only one incident that reached Western news media and four men were executed for the incident (the fifth killed himself). The police identified and captured suspects almost immediately after the incident and it went to the courts right after. So I’m not sure where the claim that they weren’t prosecuted is coming from. You can view the timeline of the incident at https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/19/asia/india-rape-execution-intl-hnk/index.html https://edition.cnn.com/2020/03/19/asia/india-rape-execution...

zapdrive 6y ago
Those protests were mostly stupid. I agree there was anger and rage, but as you mentioned the arrests were swift. The protestors were basically demanding that the suspects be hanged immediately, without due process. Which is why I called it stupid.
kumarvvr 6y ago
Every now and then, a crime of such magnitude happens (the woman was assaulted to such an extent that her internal organs were damaged from iron rods inserted into her vagina, which speaks to more of cruelty and inhumanity, than the need for sexual gratification) that it captures the news cycle. This is the reason the case was quickly solved (quickly as in about 5 years) But there are many rapes, that are not reported, or if reported, the victim seldom gets justice because of dragging in courts, etc. And, in any judicial system, solid evidence is required, so rape of a woman in a field, at night, where she might not even remember the faces of her assaulters, might not have enough evidence, apart from circumstantial ones (in cases where the assaulters escaped), leading to no justice to her.
- spoonjim 6y ago
  The scary thing is that the main perpetrator of that rape/murder was 17 years old and under Indian law couldn’t even be sentenced to a long prison term. He’s out and his name is unknown.
  - 6y ago