The Road That Ought To Be Taken
The chilling rape-turned-murder case from R G Kar in Kolkata, the sickening molestation attempt at a medical college in Coimbatore, and the horrifying hidden cameras incident at GEC in Andhra Pradesh have led to rising tensions across the country over the past few months. But it is unsurprising that this recent surge of sexual harassment cases has, well, not been so recent after all. Our institutions have a history of breeding such incidents and attempting to keep them under wraps. Students have caught on, however, and have since banded together to call them out in the form of silent protests, rallies, and public gatherings. An ever-simmering wave of unrest has gripped us in a chokehold since the unearthing of such cases, leaving the masses agitated about what they might see next and the authorities clueless over how to tackle it.
When a ship leaks from so many sides, there is hardly any point in trying to mend it one hole at a time, much less by cursing at the water. Perhaps, you should look into how you have built them in the first place. What you need is a culture shift. A culture of accountability. Authorities are also susceptible to mistakes. And no, admitting fault alone does not solve the problem, but it always remains a good first step. To solve a problem, you need to recognize that there is one. So, how does one inculcate a culture of accountability in this context? One must realize, after seeing the widespread outcries all over universities in India regarding sexual harassment, that the last straw in each case is usually the response.
To start, the most fundamentally helpful quality would be empathy. Perhaps after bearing witness to the general attitude of India towards matters such as this, it may not seem quite as easy. A victim-centred, zero-tolerance response should be fostered in every institution which is responsible for the student’s safety. These institutions must mandate training for every employee, instructing them on how to approach the complainant(s) in sensitive situations. A little support goes a long way - as does a willingness to listen. These training sessions serve as an extra measure in the vetting process of hiring. When a company recruits employees, there is as much emphasis on the HR aspects as on the CVs. And these are capitalist machines built to spit out profits and nothing else. For institutions that do so much more to harness human potential, it should be a no-brainer that they invest effort into cultivating a safe and reaffirming atmosphere and not just focus on numbers, statistics, and rankings. Shifting the overall philosophy to ‘intangibles’ like these will result in a tangible change with time. If they are capable of this, the byproduct would be safer environments that would not be faced with such issues to begin with. Along with proper vetting and training, it is also necessary to have an airtight code of rules that holds the people in charge to the highest standards. A certain section of students gets subjected to a plethora of rules in the name of safety, so it is only fair that we expect the same, if not more, from the authorities.
Then, there is the matter of communication, not just with those affected but with the entire community. More often than not, the lack of communication can lead to a lacuna in the public consciousness, which then becomes a breeding ground for rumours and distorted facts. The objective reality of a matter can get lost in a long sequence of Chinese whispers. This issue can easily be curbed by open and transparent communication of all decisions taken by the official bodies involved. More often than not, students feel left in the dark and uncertain about the stance taken by the universities. There are official Instagram accounts; messages can be circulated via WhatsApp through the student representatives. If the public addressals aren’t reaching all of the intended audience, it is natural to think that this is done by design. That the awareness is intentionally being tanked. There is no use in responding correctly if the public doesn’t know about it.
Only when those in positions of power fully internalise and comprehend the perspective of the victim in these incidents, and actively inculcate within themselves a culture of empathy and accountability, will the needle begin to move. And it is our duty as the youth of this nation to cry out for change till that needle points right towards justice.
Further Resources
Sadly, we cannot completely gloss over the chances of authorities remaining incompetent to deal with such matters or cases where the public stays silent even as they watch the injustice unfold. Even today, the burden of fighting for their rights, quite unfairly, falls on the victim’s shoulders alone. The societal condition is such that the victim is sometimes forced into remaining silent, especially if they are from a lower socio-economic background. We have compiled a list of communities and resources you can approach if you have been a victim of sexual harassment, too.
Non-Profit Organisations:
