Gender neutral rape laws are welcome

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http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-07-19/india/32746164_1_sexual-assault-sexual-violence-sexual-abuse

Government’s proposal to include sexual assault on men and boys on par with erstwhile term rape under Section 376 of Indian Penal Code (IPC) is a welcome and long overdue move.

The proposal before the Cabinet seeks to change the definition of “rape” as a crime involving sexual assault of women and defined by forcible penetration. The move now is to expand the definition to include male victims of sexual assault as well by changing the relevant provisions of the IPC, Evidence Act and CrPc. If the proposal goes through, “rape” as a category of crime will cease to exist in the statute books, as the proposal is to replace it with “sexual assault”—a gender-neutral distinction.

What is perplexing is opposition by some feminists to criminalize sexual assault on men and boys.

Those opposed to the move, like Flavia Agnes, said the government had suddenly woken up after the assault on a girl in Guwahati. “I oppose the proposal to make rape laws gender neutral. There is physicality in the definition of rape, there is use of power and the victim has a stigma attached to her. If made gender-neutral, rape laws will not have the deterrence value and it will make it more complicated for judges in court,” Agnes said.

The complications are only in the mind of such feminists who vehemently protest against women’s human rights violation but consider it their God given duty to protest against laws to protect men on par with women!

National Commission for Women at it again

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What exactly is the message National Commission for Women(NCW) has for Indian women is an interesting question!  Just a few months back, the NCW chairperson Mamta Sharma made news for advising women that being called sexy could be taken as a complement rather than as an affront.

Well here is a complete about turn from the same Mamta ‘foot-in-the-mouth’ Sharma now advising women to dress carefully in order to avoid attacks on them.  News below:

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-07-19/india/32745853_1_ncw-chairperson-rajasthan-pradesh-mahila-congress-molestation-case

NEW DELHI: National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Mamta Sharma’s statement asking women to dress carefully to avoid crimes (like molestation) against them has sparked outrage and disgust with rights activists questioned the selection process of NCW office-bearers.

Sharma’s comments came close on the heels of the removal of Alka Lamba from a fact-finding committee probing the Guwahati molestation case for revealing the victim’s identity.

While speaking about the molestation case on Tuesday, Sharma stopped short of prescribing a dress code. She said, “Be careful about how you dress… Aping the west blindly is eroding our culture and causing such crimes to happen.”

The statement is all the more perplexing and absurd being made in context of the well-publicized Guwahati molestation case.

We sincerely hope that the so called women’s commission which is nothing more than National Confusion for Women is either overhauled completely or maybe even closed down since it is not serving any useful purpose whatsoever.  Several well known feminists and women politicians themselves have expressed the same sentiment:

There has never been an assessment or social audit of the NCW’s work in taking up women’s issues, advocate Flavia Agnes said. “They have nothing to do with women’s groups or women’s movement. Rather than taking women’s issues to the government, they are busy doing a PR job for the government,” she added.

While Agnes wondered who were selected as NCW office-bearers and their credibility, Ranjana Kumari suggested an electoral college to choose NCW functionaries. “Now, it is a parking lot or a rehabilitation centre for bureaucrats and politicians who the ruling party can’t accommodate anywhere else.”

Sharma was removed as the chief of Rajasthan Pradesh Mahila Congress after she was accused of anti-party activities in 2010 after a six-year stint. The PMO found no substance in the complaint and named her the NCW chief.

CPM leader Brinda Karat demanded the NCW chairperson withdraw her statement or quit. “Such advice is unwarranted and militates against the mandate of the commission. It only strengthens the forces who blame victims for the crimes against them,” she said.

Earlier, at a seminar in Jaipur in February, Sharma had told women, “Don’t be offended if someone calls you ‘sexy’, rather take it positively.”

BJP spokesperson Nirmala Seetharaman said, “The NCW’s role in the Assam molestation case undermined the probe and privacy of the victim. We hope the NCW chairperson and its members will focus on standing by women rather than giving them advisories.”

In China, wife loses right to property after divorce

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Maybe Indian lawmakers need to learn from China rather than aping the West in hastily proposing amendments under Hindu Marriage Act which will give women the power of giving no-fault divorce and take away 50% of husbands’ property(and more) for a marriage which might have lasted only 1 day.

http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-08-22/china/29914022_1_marriage-law-divorce-personal-property

PTI Aug 22, 2011, 06.06am IST

BEIJING: A ruling by China’s supreme court divesting wives of the right of co-ownership of property in the event of divorce has stirred up major controversy , as it changed the country’s time honoured marriage law almost overnight.

The changed marriage law, which took effect on August 13, stipulates that houses bought on mortgage by one party prior to wedlock are to be deemed as the personal property of the registered owner, rather than the joint estate of the couple.

The judicial ruling, intended to resolve real estate disputes in divorce cases, depriving wives’ of co-ownership of a couple’s home will make them feel both insecure and unromantic, women’s rights groups have said.

Passed without any public debate, it challenges the traditional Chinese view that to secure a marriage the groom has to buy an apartment, which has become increasingly expensive , Liu Yan, a lawyer on marital affairs said.

For a Chinese man marriage is impossible without him owning an apartment, the right over which was shared in the event of divorce as per the old rules.

‘Risky’ postings rile women warders in State prisons

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In India, it is a proud moment when there is a news reported of women standing equal shoulder with men and taking up traditional men’s jobs – like airline pilot, in military, auto-driver, taxi driver, and so on; but then their jobs are labelled as ‘risky’ and dangerous when they do these job in same conditions as men do and it does not seem so appealing anymore.  Is not women taking up risky jobs a small cost to pay for women empowerment?  Equal pay for equal work also means Equal work for equal pay!  News below:

http://www.deccanherald.com/content/264617/risky-postings-rile-women-warders.html

Akshatha M, Mangalore, July 15, 2012, DHNS:

Asked to guard male prisoners, they face a tough time on duty

Women warders recruited to central prisons and district jails are facing a tough time, thanks to the ‘risky postings’ by the Prisons Department. Recruited under 33 per cent quota for women, the warders are now posted to guard male prisoners.

A case in point is the district jail in Mangalore where 10 women warders appointed months ago are now made to guard the cells where male prisoners are lodged.A warder, who wished to be unnamed said they had to discharge their duty standing in between the jail compound and the cell. “While some criminals glare at us some throw lewd comments,” she said.

According to the sources, the women warders in Chikmagalur district jail are also put on duty to guard the barracks housing male prisoners, causing humiliation to warders.

Worse was the plight at Belgaum Central prison where women warders were put on night duty. The system was withdrawn this June following an unsavoury incident and severe opposition from warders. The situation is no different in Mysore and Bellary jails.

This apart, the women staff lack basic facilities at their workplace. Though female warders are supposed to be provided with rest rooms and toilets, the ‘luxury’ remains only on paper. Neither do they have a place of shelter nor any security to protect themselves on the jail premises.

“We do not have a place to sit and guard the prisoners. Be it sun or rain, we are supposed to stand for hours outside the barracks. The only place of shelter is a dilapidated open toilet located near the barrack,” said a warder in Mangalore jail.
The pleas of the warders have fallen on deaf ears. Their complaints are met with a readymade reply: “You have been recruited as warder under 33 per cent quota. You are equivalent to your male counterparts. Hence, you should not expect any special provision on the jail premises.” The jail superintendents too express their helplessness as they say they have received the order from the “top.” 

Sources said there were provisions to post women warders to less risky jobs such as gate duty, officers duty, guard duty and sentrying and the higher authorities were yet to make up their mind. In fact, the problems at the workplace have compelled a few warders to contemplate quitting the job.

When contacted, Additional Director General of Police (Prisons) K V Gagandeep told Deccan Herald that there was no problem with the women warders. “I have not received any complaint so far and I insist them to do their duty whatsoever.”

Planning commission of India going nuts!

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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Make-moms-first-guardians-Panel/articleshow/12615525.cms

The same planning commission in news for recommending Rs 32/day as poverty line and for renovating 2 toilets (ok 10 toilet seats) for Rs 35 lakh has been short of progressive ideas, hence this hare-brained scheme from them.  If they only looked at custody orders in family courts, they will realize it is fathers who are in dire need to be given more custody rights so they are not kicked out of children’s life except as an ATM machine and sperm donors!

Mahendra K Singh, TNN Apr 11, 2012, 01.47AM IST

NEW DELHI: In a move to empower women, a government panel wants that a mother should be listed as the first guardian for all official purposes instead of a father, arguing that she primarily looks after the children.

“Since normally it is the mother who primarily looks after the children, she should be listed as the first guardian,” the Planning Commission’s Working Group said in its report.

The panel has recommended a review of all laws to make mothers equal guardians of their children. Currently, there is a practice of mentioning the father as the first guardian in all official documents such as school admission forms, birth certificates etc. The group has suggested that all existing regulations and rules ought to be revisited to ensure that the mother’s signature as a guardian is universally accepted in all official records.

The recommendation is part of a slew of measures suggested by the group to make laws more gender sensitive. It also asked the government to revisit laws related to maintenance and guardianship to ensure separated women get adequate maintenance and custody rights over their children.

The suggestion, if accepted, would ensure women’s first right over a child whether she is married or divorced, said a member of the group.

“Once all laws are re-looked in light of the recommendations, the women will not be forced by any government or private agencies such as schools or passport offices to mandatorily disclose husbands’ names,” she said. “The existing laws on the issue are archaic and were conceptualized with a patriarchal mindset,” said another member.

The group, headed by the women and child development secretary, wants to relook at all the laws that do not treat guardianship rights of mother on a par with those of the father. The panel, which argued that family law reform has been neglected, said the laws need to recognize a woman as an equal partner with her husband and her contribution to the household or the productive nature of work that fairer sex do.

The path-breaking recommendations would ensure that mothers have an equal right in care-giving as well as in crucial decision-making processes, financial or otherwise, affecting children’s lives. The law commission in its 83rd report submitted in 1980 had suggested amendment in guardianship laws.

“The Guardians and Wards Act, 1890 was enacted 90 years ago. At the time, women had scarcely any rights: for them there was only social and legal degradation, material insecurity and other manifestations of dominance and false superiority of men,” it had said.

The commission also recommended to amend Section 6 of the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act, 1956, to allow the mother the custody of a minor till it is 12 years old. “It is necessary to allow the mother the custody of a child till it attains the age of 12 to prevent the father from using the child as a pawn for securing complete submission of his wife,” the report added.

Indian women learning filing IPC 498a cases on husbands doesn’t pay

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Here is a recent news which sounds interesting in the vein of “dog bites man” variety, but it hides more than it discloses.  We attempt to give the hidden story which has not been shared with the readers of news below:

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/channels/cities/hyderabad/women-shell-out-cash-quick-divorces-707

June 25, 2012 | By SULOGNA MEHTA | Hyderabad

Wrangling over alimony and settlements has been a common phenomenon down the years but cut to 2012. Lawyers now find a new emerging trend in family courts. Instead of men paying alimony and divorce settlements, it’s the women who are now coming forward to pay settlements and compensation to their divorce reluctant husbands so that they can quickly get on with their lives.

The women shell out money to get rid of the legal hassles of lengthy divorce procedures and to quickly move on with their lives. These women are working, independent and mostly aged in their late-20s and early 30s and place a premium on time. “To get a quick and easy divorce, women are coming forward to pay the legal charges, compensation and settlements to their husbands. They just don’t want to contest the case and drag the divorce procedure for years by letting the spouse appeal to higher courts. All they want is to begin life anew at the earliest and don’t mind denouncing permanent alimony,” pointed out family court advocate Anita Salabh Jain.

28-year-old V. Janaki (name changed), working in the telecommunication department, had filed a dowry harassment case against her husband, a government employee. “My husband got bail and said that he would contest the case and even move the Apex Court to take revenge on me for sending him to jail, as it had cost him his job. It would simply mean our divorce case might get dragged on for years while it was impossible for me to stay with a abusive husband. I withdrew the criminal case against him, decided to forego permanent alimony, gave him adequate compensation for his lost job, paid the security amount and all legal expenses, all of which amounted to a few lakhs of rupees,” she said, adding that after a few counseling sessions and all these compromises, her husband agreed to go in for a mutual divorce.

The news story talks about a new trend, however it provides a grand total of one instance of Ms V Janaki cited as proof of the trend.  More importantly, it does not give comments of Ms Janaki’s husband who was on the receiving end of dowry harassment case, which might have helped readers on getting the full picture.

Here we attempt to give a more complete and realistic picture of what is happening in society when it comes to marital disputes, separation, and divorces, keeping Ms Janaki’s case as the backdrop.

  1. Ms Janaki decides she does not want to stay in marriage.
  2. She checks her options and realizes that getting a divorce in India is pretty much a impossible exercise unless both parties agree to a mutual consent divorce.
  3. At the same time, her lawyer/advisors (read gold-diggers) advice her of possibility of getting a quick divorce along with a lumpsum settlement should she decide to file on her husband what is commonly known as a dowry harassment case under section 498a of IPC (Indian Penal Code).
  4. Ms Janaki starts dreaming of hitting the jackpot and getting rid of her husband in one shot.  Her advisors start dreaming of possible lucrative cash flow when the game is over and done with.
  5. She files a IPC 498a case on her husband.  The police is all too eager to help since who can turn down a woman in distress, never mind that the conviction rate under IPC 498a is in single digits!
  6. Contrary to the expected plan, Ms Janaki’s husband is made of higher mettle and decides that there is no point trying to enter into financial settlement especially after losing his job.  What more is there to lose anyway?  He decides to fight the criminal case even if it takes him a few years.
  7. Ms Janaki realizes the game did not work out as planned, and wants to cut short her losses (time) and decides to pay to husband.  Phew!

Crime doesn’t pay.

Cops asked to exercise caution in dowry cases

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Recent news in Bangalore, Karnataka says: cops asked to exercise caution in dowry cases.  Well really, this is nothing new but circular issued in Oct 2010 which maybe Bangalore police is re-discovering now that there has been high-profile murder cases due to fear of false cases, and also request by major IT companies in Bangalore to police to not arrest (everyone in family and the dog) merely on filing of a dowry harassment (IPC 498a) case on husband.

The idea of police doing mediation and counselling is almost laughable.  What business or even training does police have in counselling anyone?  Usually the only counselling that happens at police stations is to instil fear of gender biased (read anti-men) laws in men so that the sooner they compromise their self-respect and dignity, the better for them.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bangalore/Cops-asked-to-exercise-caution-in-dowry-cases/articleshow/14728067.cms

M K Madhusoodan, TNN | Jul 7, 2012, 06.26AM IST

BANGALORE: Men falsely accused of demanding dowry can breathe easy. Checks and balances have been put in place to handle dowry harassment complaints that have often led to accused husbands and in-laws being arrested.

Police officers in Karnataka have been told to exercise restraint while making arrests on plaints relating to offences under Section 498-A of the IPC. A recent circular has laid out guidelines to handle such complaints. “An arrest under Section 498-A should be made only with a written order from a police officer of the rank of superintendent in the districts or deputy commissioner in commissionerates. Arrests should be resorted to only for acceptable reasons,” the circular said.

CHECKS & BALANCES
Counsellors will mediate between spouses Counsellors’ reports will be sent to DCPs/SPs Officers will invoke Section 498-A if they’re not satisfied with counselling results Investigating officers can arrest accused husband and in-laws only with written order from jurisdictional DCP/SP All dowry plaints will be screened

Bangalore: The Karnataka police officers have been instructed not to accept dowry harassment cases at face value, and study them well before pressing ahead. This could spell the end — or, at least, reduction — of false and trumped-up cases.

According to a recent circular, all complaints should be screened by professional and trained family counsellors to weed out frivolous cases. Their reports will be submitted to DCPs or officers of equivalent rank; only if they are not satisfied with counselling results can Section 498A be invoked.

The advisory follows recommendations of the Rajya Sabha Committee of Petitions, which has asked the state governments to take effective measures to curb misuse of Section 498-A. The circular also mandates that the guidelines should be displayed at all police stations to ensure the public are aware of their rights/liabilities. ` The dowry harassment law should not be invoked against juveniles, the advisory says. In case of any exceptions, the investigating officer should ensure children are put under the care of the child welfare committee for interim care.

More Indian men committing suicide because of divorce

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http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Divorce-driving-people-to-suicide-Report/articleshow/14571696.cms

Dipak Kumar Dash, TNN | Jul 2, 2012, 03.08AM IST

NEW DELHI: Divorce, “illegitimate pregnancy” and professional/career problems seem to be pushing more people to commit suicide. According to the NCRB report, in 2011, at least 16 people committed suicide every hour and the total figure was 1.35 lakh.

While family problems accounted for almost one-fourth of suicides, illness was another major reason.

Interestingly, suicides due to divorce and “illegitimate pregnancy” saw a rise of 54% and 20% respectively in 2011.

The report showed that 70% of victims were married and Rajasthan recorded maximum mass family suicides in the country. Statistics and trends compiled by the board showed that social and economic causes led most men to commit suicide whereas emotional and personal causes mainly drove women to take the extreme step.

Underlying the economic angle to suicides, the report said 38% of victims were self-employed whereas the share of those with permanent jobs (government jobs) committing suicide was negligible at 1.2%.

West Bengal, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka accounted for 56.2% of the total suicides in the country while West Bengal recorded the highest number of suicide victims. Among 53 mega cities with over 10 lakh population, Chennai registered 2,438 suicides while Bangalore (1,717), Delhi (1,385) and Mumbai (1,162) followed. The four cities reported almost 36.7% of the total suicides.

The report showed Nagaland reporting the highest increase of 175% in suicides in 2011 compared to the previous year while in Chandigarh, it increased by 47.9%.

The data showed 72 mass/family suicides in Rajasthan and 19 in Kerala. Using poison and hanging were the two most common modes of committing suicide across the country.

All India Protest against proposed Marriage Law Amendment Bill 2010 (Commonly known as IrBM)

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A protest (dharna) was organised by Centre for Men’s Rights in Bangalore, India on 26th May against Marriage Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2010 which introduces Irretrievable Breakdown of Marriage (IrBM) as a valid ground for divorce.  Similar protests have been organised in other cities like Mumbai and Pune.

Men’s rights activists and civil society from all over India has planned to do a similar protest in Delhi on 18th Aug, 2012.  The brief of the event and description is given below.  To know the exact venue, kindly follow the link to Facebook event below which will be updated by latest information by the organisers of the protest.

https://www.facebook.com/events/344609905607763/

Dilli Chalo if you want to “Bring about the Change”!! Govt.of India is all set to pass a law that will simply disempower husbands from owing their own hard earned property in the event of a divorce. And it would apply blindly, like a formula on all marriages.

Also, Govt. neither ready to disclose amended clauses in the bill, nor ready for a dialogue with men’s rights activists to consider the rights and interests of husbands in the law.

Join this mass protest against fascist gender-biased and anti-male law making in India allowing unconstitutional laws to be passed.

People from all over India must join this protest and raise their voice against misandry.

Domestic violence by mothers and Social engineering in Malaysia

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http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2012/06/09/most-child-abusers-are-parents-survey-malaysia.html

A recent government survey in Malaysia reveals that more child abuse is done by mothers than fathers.  So much for the feminist propaganda which shows men and fathers are perpetual perpetrators of domestic violence and women and children as hapless victims.

Many of the other points in the news story are somewhat tragi-comic.  Original news interspersed with our comments follows below:

YUEN MEIKENG (The Star), Asia News Network, Kuala Lumpur | World | Sat, 06/09/2012 9:25 PM

In a surprising finding, the largest percentage of child abusers were found to be the parents themselves.

Deputy Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Heng Seai Kie said Saturday that last year 44.3% of child abusers the parents.

And mothers were worse abusers than the fathers.

“Mothers made up 25.4% of perpetrators in child abuse cases while 18.9% were fathers. Together, parents made up 44.3% of child abusers in incidents recorded last year nationwide,” she said in her speech at the third national conference of the Association of Registered Child Care Providers Malaysia (PPBM) in Kuala Lumpur on Saturday.

This has been consistent for the last three years.

She said parents should learn to strike a balance between work and parental responsibilities.

“I don’t blame mothers completely. Some mothers have to juggle their career and family and are burdened by multiple responsibilities,” she said, adding that fathers should to chip in with home duties to reduce the pressure on mothers.

Comment: This is her personal opinion and does not seem to be reflected in the survey!  No similar excuses are ever given to justify any domestic violence complaints against men.

Heng also revealed that child abuse statistics from Selangor and Kuala Lumpur were constantly above 50% of the total cases in Malaysia.

On another matter, she said the ministry hoped to increase the percentage of children enrolled in child care centres from the current 4% to 25% by 2020.

“This is in line with the Government’s policy in encouraging the participation of women in the work force. One of our objectives is to increase the number of women from the current 41% to at least 55% of the total work force by 2015,” Heng said, adding that one of the challenges for women to have a career was their responsibility towards their children.

Comment:  It is quite perplexing is the seemingly huge goal to increase women’s participation in workforce from 41 to 55% to be achieved within a timespan of only 3 years!  We hope this is not to be achieved by mass laying off of men.  It is difficult to imagine how such a goal is achievable otherwise.  Unless the government plan also involves to encourage stay-at-home fathers taking care of children while the mothers work outside home.

It is borne by statistical data from US that as women’s participation rate increases in workforce, men’s participation rate in labour force decreases.  Such men who are thrown out of work due to such social engineering must be compensated in same way by the welfare state that aims both fiscal measures as well as incentives to create more child care centres.

She said that in order to set up more child care centres, the Government offered incentives to corporate bodies and government agencies to establish such facilities at the work place.

Heng said a RM200,000 incentive was given to government agencies while private companies were offered a tax deduction of 10% from their annual income for 10 years by the Finance Ministry to set up child care centers.

Early Child Care and Education Council assistant treasurer Shamsinah Shariff said the council would encourage housing developers to allocate land to build child care centres and kindergartens at residential areas.