sexual violence against women

My letter published in The Hindu on 12.01.16

The sexual assault on women and objectification of women are not the result of sudden moral degradation of men of the 21^st century . They are centuries  old problems prevailing in India.   What has changed is the attitude and  sensitivity  of women  of  recent decades towards continued sexual violence on them in different forms within homes and in public places . Now the "suffering and bearing in silence" attitude of the previous decade's women towards sexual assaults has disappeared . It includes even  the uneducated and rural women. The  empowered women to day are aware of their rights to live with  dignity,  provisions  of the women protection laws and have the support of the media, NGOS and parents to expose the culprits . Hence ,what has changed is the number of reported cases and wide publicity given . The mind set towards women body is the same , whether they are in drunken or  in non drunken condition . The solution lies not in making few more new laws  but, in the type of upbringing the boys have at home, imparting of moral values at school level , a sensitised police force , quick justice delivery system and strict  control over the movie makers who portray women  characters as sex objects and brainless  gender who will bear all sorts assault on their dignity and character.