The trial of five of the six suspects in the New Delhi gang rape case that has captured worldwide attention began on Tuesday, just as the Indian government moved to strengthen its sexual assault laws in response to public outrage.
Last week, we asked you to weigh in on what needs to be done to end the problem of sexual assault and violence against women in India, and you offered a wide range of solutions. Some readers suggested castration of child rapists. Others offered support for the death penalty in violent cases. One argued that women should change how they dress and that boys who reached a mature age should be encouraged to marry.
Overwhelmingly, your comments contended that change depended on reforming the police and the justice system and addressing deep-rooted cultural attitudes.
“While none can forget or forgive the perpetrators of such a heinous crime, we tend to forget that the reason for them to occur is a brutal and corrupt police force. A force that knows no accountability,” wrote Gautam Nellore Reddy from Bangalore, India.
The police should be treated as “an accessory to the crime if they don’t register a complaint” and as an accomplice if they suppress information, Mr. Reddy wrote.
In addition to holding the police accountable for how they handle – or fail to handle – cases of violence against women, as well as arguing the need for more female police officers, Vijayendra Kumar of Washington encouraged changes in India’s court system.
“It may be a good idea to have [a] special unit for handling all violence against women and the unit should be headed by a woman,” Mr. Kumar wrote. “It is also very necessary to establish courts dealing with women’s issues with a mandate that judgments be delivered in a time-bound manner.”
A number of readers, including Mr. Kumar, said that reforms in the police and judicial systems would only be partial fixes. To address the abuse and violence further, they responded, India needs a change in mind-set and attitudes.
“Fast-track courts, greater women police, a sensitized male police force, all these actions are merely applying Band-Aids to a broken leg,” wrote Dr. Shireen Hyrapiet of Oregon State University. “There exists a culture of the inferiority of women which cannot and will not change unless the government and people are on the same page and equally committed to bringing about change.”
Some also suggested bringing about such a change in attitudes through education, media and social practices.
Annu Palakunnathu Matthew, a photography professor at the University of Rhode Island, grew up in India and remembers facing sexism as a young person.
“I called those years ‘my angry young woman’ days,” she wrote in a comment to The Times, adding that India now needs a cultural shift of attitudes. “Expecting women to, for example, wear long overcoats is not a serious way to resolve the problem.”
In a project called “Bollywood Satirized,” Ms. Matthew uses digital technology to alter Indian movie posters and make a commentary on gender norms and traditional roles in Indian society. A poster labeled #DELHIRAPE she created in response to the recent case displays the headline “From the Director of ‘Out of Touch Politicians.’ ”
Others who responded to our question said they believed that cultural change could be brought about by focusing on the lessons Indian children learn at home as well as through improving their education about sexual assault in schools.
A reader who gave the name Swathi recommended that the Indian media put out public service announcements with male movie stars and athletes promoting the message, “Real men do not rape.”
Another reader, David Raney of Chapel Hill, N.C., presented a particularly creative idea. He said that Indian society should start practicing a new ritual based around respecting women. One day, he said, should be set aside each week to honor women and give them flowers to wear around their necks.
“This would at least be a physical ritual,” Mr. Raney wrote, because “in India, rituals create change.”
More reader responses on this topic can be found here. Please post your own ideas and opinions below.
