Indian Law: apathetic to Women's Rights?

Over three-quarters of Indian judges have never heard of the Convention on Discrimination against Women despite the Indian Government having ratified it. Shocked?

Apathy or Ignorance?
The first legal initiative to define the human rights of women in terms of women's reality is the Convention on Discrimination against Women. The Indian Government has ratified it. Yet more than 75 per cent of our judges had not heard of it.

Over 90 per cent of them said that they would not want their daughters or female relatives to opt for legal redress in case of domestic violence. Almost 75 percent of them felt that preservation of the family should be a primary concern for the women even if there was violence. 70 percent of our judges thought that wearing 'provocative' clothes was an invitation to a sexual assault.

These shocking findings were thrown up by a report prepared in late 1996 by Sakshi, a NGO working for women's rights. They clearly indicated that the Indian judiciary is still unaware of the issues regarding violence against women.

An emergency situation
Retired judge V.R.Krishna Iyer, who has served on the bench of the Supreme Court, has been quoted as having said that it is an emergency-like situation and judicial powers have to be used to restore the dignity of women.

He has time and again said that it is vital for judges to be sensitive towards issues of human suffering. But many of them are insensitive. Never appoint a person as a judge unless he has the capacity to weep in the face of human suffering, Justice Iyer has proclaimed on numerous public occasions.

More women lawyers?
What is needed is the sensitisation of the judiciary to women's issues. However, this is not enough. There must be more women judges. Lawyer Indira Jaising feels that unless this happens, getting justice for women will remain difficult. Of the 545 high court judges in India, only 10 are women. This might be the reason why women are afraid and nervous in courts.

Not women-friendly
Another report that Sakshi prepared by interviewing women litigants reveals that they feel self-conscious in a predominantly male environment in courts. Most of the women interviewed said that they were humiliated and embarrassed by the number of men staring at them. Such discomfort becomes acute in cases that deal with violence and sexual assault. Even when the defence asks the women offensive questions, the male judges do not see them as inappropriate, despite the objections raised by her or her lawyers. Judges are completely in the dark when it comes to the traumatic experiences of a woman subject to domestic violence or sexual assault.

Moving towards gender sensitivity
Sakshi is involved in gender sensitivity training - getting judges to understand the social context of violence against women and realise the gender inequalities prevalent in our society. It attempts to create in them empathy for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault.

There has been an alarming increase in the number of cases of violence against women. So we do need to examine the alternatives, other than the Indian law courts, that these women can employ to seek justice. But that does not mean that we ignore the failings of our judicial system. Our law courts have been guilty of holding women-victims in cases of violence and assault - in a perpetual state of consent. Unless this changes, justice for women in India will remain a distant dream.