Safety of women in Tamil Nadu a huge concern, says expert

COIMBATORE: Stating that of the 923 sexual harassment and rape cases registered last year only 26% of the accused have been punished, Suganthi P, Secretary General, All India Democratic Women's Association, said that the safety of women in Tamil Nadu, especially working women, was a huge concern. She was speaking at a conference where 250 women employees of Life Insurance Corporation of India, across Coimbatore, Tirupur, Erode and Nilgiris districts had gathered.
Although several companies have committees to look into harassment cases filed by women, she said that many were not functioning efficiently. "A working woman fulfils her domestic duties and works in the office too. She must be appreciated and respected but the reality is unfortunately very different," said Suganthi.
In a recent survey conducted by her association, 4000 of the 5000 female employees who participated said that they faced sexual harassment in different forms. "The problem is that women are hesitant to talk about such issues fearing humiliation and embarrassment," she said.
According to the economic census of India, of the total 402 million workers, 127 million are females. This means that 25% of women in India are an active part of the country's workforce.
Harassment in any form should be fought against, be it in schools, colleges, work place or even at home. "Recently, when I attended a conference in Tanjavur, a few students walked up to me but hesitated to open up about their problems. Once the teachers left, they became very emotional.
One student told me she was being harassed by her uncle hat home," she added. "We need to raise our daughters as equals to our sons. The training has to start at home," said one participant. While several reasons were stated, most employees felt addiction to alcohol was one major cause for the increase in rape cases. "More than one crore men in Tamil Nadu are addicted to alcohol," said Suganthi.
Women need to be aware of the new section 166 A included in IPC according to which if a government servant fails to register a First Information Report (FIR), they shall be imprisoned for more than a year. Also, an FIR can be registered only in the presence of a female police officer or a female government servant. "There are several laws and sections in our justice system protecting women but most of them are not followed," said Uma Maheshwary, member of Insurance Corporation Employees' Association.