Recently two major events of rape and supposed murder of a college student and a five-year old girl have shaken the nation’s collective conscience. People from all walks of life showed their anger in the streets. The Union Home Minister tried to calm down residents of Delhi and the members of the Parliament by saying, such incidents are taking place not only in Delhi but all over India. Sexual crimes have gone epidemic. From top brass of the nation to the bottom, all are affected. Why our traditional society has deteriorated to this level? Where to lay the fault?
The boom of sex channels, erotic songs and postures for money in Hindi cinema in the name of providing entertainment, availability of porn CDs in the open market, erotic postures on the walls, free sex culture in universities and top class sex luxuries as bribes to our white men and absence of any effective law to tackle such issues are the reasons for these horrific sexual crimes. Unfortunately, we do not wake up unless the sexual violence is also accompanied by physical violence. A woman who survives the rape without significant physical injury is often held responsible for a crime committed against her while the rapist often faces limited, if any, social or legal actions.
Where is the fault? Are we mimicking the West? Undoubtedly, yes. We are encouraging pre-martial consensual sex in our traditional Indian society in the name of freedom. We have installed condom machines at the gate of universities for ‘safer sex’. Instead of encouraging our traditional marriage system, we are asking our youths to follow the Western style of free sex.
Take a look at America. The National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey (NISVS) reports that “on average 24 people per minute are victims of rape, physical violence, or stalking by an intimate partner in the United States” based on a survey conducted in 2010. These numbers only tell part of the story – more than one million women are raped in a year. Most women knew their assailants: 51% were raped by partners, and 48% were raped by acquaintances.
Now take a look at France, the prosperous fortress of European civilisation. Sexual violence has risen six fold over the last decade. Call for heavier penalties for rape is growing. Newspapers have very frequent headlines such as “Two girls’ gang rape trial shocks France and sparks row over justice system” (The Guardian, 9 October 2012)
People are now fed up with this free culture where there is no security to the priceless honour of women. Demands for capital punishment to the rapists are growing day by day. Leaders are now openly advocating capital punishment for rapists. Justice Verma Committee has submitted its recommendation, but that too seems to be inadequate now. People are now even asking capital punishment to rapists in public so that it could be a deterrent to others. At the same time they have also asked girls not to travel or go alone in the bus. Universities have asked girls not to put on revealing dress like jeans.
Does Islam offer any solution to these problems? Islam, in order to protect theinvaluable and priceless honour of women, has commanded the believing women to adorn hijab, askedits followers to lower their gazes. Not only this, Allah has commanded the guardians of women (fathers, uncles, brothers and husbands, etc.) to maintain, sustain and protect the womenfolk under their ward. Islam forbids women to wear clothes that are not modest and to travel without a mahram. Islam encourages young men and women to marry early, and many other rulings which close the door to rape. Islam advocates 100 lashes to the rapists in public if the rapist is a bachelor, and stoning to death in public if the rapist is married.
Are we going to listen to Islam or follow the West? I leave this questionto readers to decide.
[DR MOHAMMED SHAHID KAMAL is Lecturer, Khamis Community College, King Khalid University, Saudi Arabia]