Anyone having trouble remembering the grimness of the December 2012 rape incident in Delhi should read this article published in The Guardian before any further rumination. I too, like others who are applauding today’s capital punishment for the culprits, find solace in the belief that capital punishment might be the effective ointment for palliating the wounds such crimes inflict on our society. But let us not get so obsessed with this superficial balm that we ignore the need for removing root cause of the disease. “Death for all” might be the rally point of social media activism, but is 21st century India ready to arrive at a consensus on rejecting regressive anti-feminine practices, about which even the most learned men are silent? Here are some.
1. Dowry – What discomforts me, is not the rapacity of the 50-something father and his archaic justifications for this evil system, but the bizarre silence of the well-read stop-rape-Facebook-activist groom and his timidity about defying dowry, a system that shatters the last ounce of self-worth girls are left with after years of discrimination.
2. Domestic Violence – I’m reminded of an anecdote from a neighbour. The husband, father of two beautiful daughters and a prosperous lawyer, who used to be a big fan of the show Satyamev Jayate suddenly turned into an enemigo número uno of Aamir Khan and the show. I heard him conclude how the show’s idealism could “break families”. Not surprisingly, what caused this transition, was the broadcast of an episode about the menace of domestic violence.
3. Double-think – It seems as if we have already given up the fight against malefic factors that reenforce an unjust perception of the fairer sex. Instead, we proudly proclaim our craze for such agents – actors, musicians, politicians or self-proclaimed men of God. Is there such a dearth of role models in India that even those with the best formal education cannot resist falling prey to the propaganda of Beelzebub? Double-think: To deliberately believe in lies, while knowing they are false.
The “Death for all” is a welcome judgement. But, beyond this apparent victory there are a thousand other wars to be fought, in remote regions of the country that are out of sight of the media’s camera, in faraway towns where no one stands up for support, inside sealed walls from where the victim’s voice cannot be heard. The fighter is hardly applauded; not many are interested in the outcome. Such small daily fights for the values we believe in but do not work towards are destined to bring us to a juncture where we might have to stand alone on the other side of “usual”, maybe against our families, to build a safer world for a daughter that isn’t born yet. Are you ready for it?