2015.R2.R13

Public Harassment in India

Status:

ONGOING

Title of Resolution:

2015.R2.R13: Resolution to End the Public Harassment of Women and Girls in India

WG-USA Resolves:

…to advocate to end public sexual harassment of girls and women in India.

Plan of Action:

The president of WG contact the Indian NFA to determine how we can support their efforts to end sexual harassment in public places.
Contact other organizations working to end sexual harassment in public places and to cooperate with them where feasible.
The WG-USA committee develop education on sexual harassment in public places worldwide.
WG-USA present this proposal to be approved at the next GWI Triennial Meeting in 2016 in order to increase awareness of this issue within the international community of NFAs and to encourage problem-solving partnerships between NFAs to impact this problem that is particularly extensive in South and South East Asia.

Supporting Statement:

Eve teasing is an expression used in India and other Eastern Asian countries for sexual harassment of girls and young women in public places by men who are strangers to the victims. These acts of violence are verbal slurs, obscene gestures, or physical attacks and greatly limit the mobility of the victim, causing debilitating and even permanent psychological injury, hindering their progression in education and work. Each year as more young women are out of the house for education and employment purposes, so also has this form of violence grown exponentially. In addition the tourists are not spared. In India, under the pressure from several women’s rights organizations the government has instituted laws and brought in measures to curb down this form of violence. However, the lackadaisical attitudes of elected officials and loopholes in the laws continue to exist. In India recently three young men who stood up for the girls being teased were beaten to death by the teasers.

It is time for the international organizations to apply pressure to the Indian government to step up safety measures to allow girls and women the freedom of being in public without the fear of being sexually harassed.

Financial Implication for WG-USA:

At this time no cost is anticipated.

Suggested Resources:

At this time there are no suggested resources.