PaRCha - JNU - All Organisations - 2013 ID-54849
.
Councilor Candidates.
.
Central Panel .
sss President Ishan Kingshuk.
II .
Vice Presiden! .
Zeeshan M ansi General Secretary Sudeep Pratim Johl! Secre!GIJ' -Sonarn Shubhanshu Tej ashi .
DSF AGENDA FOR 2013-14: GENDER JUSTICE .
Anti-Rape Movement: December 2012 .
.
Over the past one year, the JNU student community has been in the thick of continuous activities and debates on rising violence against women. The spontaneous protests started by the JNUSU against the December 16, 2012 gang-rape was instrumental in triggering off a massive people's movement in Delhi to resist rising crimes against women, which found resonance across the country. The participation of students and youth, both men and women, gave a new impetus to the demands for justice for women." Despite repression, these protests were unprecedented in recent decades. The slogan of 'azaadl given in JNUSU protest actions reverberated on the lips .
of thousands of students and youth across the country. The government was compelled to institute the Justice Verma Committee in 2012, enact the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act by February and The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act in March 2013 that gave recognition to a spate of neglected crimes against women like acid attack, stalking, public stripping, voyeurism, trafficking and gang rape. The existing laws on rape were strengthened and many punishments enhanced. .
Despite these advances, a reluctant government did not implement the full recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee regarding changes in the Constitution, governance, policing and initiate electoral and educational reforms for prevention of crimes against women. The government fell short of making laws against marital rape and refused to prosecute security forces for sexual crimes in AFSPA governed areas. It . also increased the age of consent for sex from 16 years to 18 yeats, thereby~ providing legal sanction to khap panchayats and r(loral p~licing QJ'igades for sexual (egulation and victirniLation of young people even for consensual sexual actlvrtY. Despite over 1 lakh rape cases pending in the criminal justice system, the government is yet to provide sufficient mechanisms for fast-tracking all 'cases. Most importantly, ·the government and the police ganged up in denial of their responsibility and culpability for the rising crimes ag_ainst women.in the country. The struggleto resist crimes against women and ensure justice for women therefore needs to be carried forward with zeal and .
determination. .
The country also witnessed the shameless sexist rants of .
patriarch~! elements across political parties: .
® Congress MP Abhijit Mukherjee mocked the protesting women in Delhi as ''dented an.d painted" .
.
. .
., .
' .
® RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat justified rapes by declaring that they happened only in westernised "India" and not in traditional bBharat" .
® Trinamul Congress M~ Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar discounted the Park Street rape incident as "a .
SLL&CS .
SIS .
Anand .
.
Chimat .
Bibek Fayaz .
Hamid .
.
Nemkim .
Jawaid .
.
Pranjal .
Riya Pushpika .
.
The Prime Minister, Manmohan Stngh embarrassed h1mself with his ~theek hai" remark in front of camera while the Leader of Opposition Sushma Sw~raJ declared that rape survivors '-Nere no more than "zinda lash" The Justice Verma Committee further noted that in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections political parties gave tickets to 6 contestants who were charged with rape -one each from RPP, RCP, BSP, JMM and two independents. Additionally, 34 candidates contested with other charges of violence against women -including 2 each from CPI (Ml) Liberation, TMC and SSP. No wonder, that the political establishment has been reluctant in acting against the likes of Asaram Bapu on charges of sexual assault of a minor. Gender insensitivity and patriarchal .
attitudes continue to dominate Indian polity, across party lines: .
.
The anti-rape movement also provides us cause for introspection. The movement was afflicted by some internal problems within progressive sections. During the protests, the 'Justice for Women Now' platform was formed comprising of different organizations of students, youth and women alongside cultural groups, dalit organizations, concerned citizens and other rights groups. However, rather than uniting for a common cause, the CPI(M)-affiliated AIDWA boycotted this platform and worked overtime to try and isolate the JNUSU because its President was from the DSF. In ·repeated programmes of women's organizations. including the Women's Day programme on March .
8, other women activists-had to persuade the AIOWA to agree to allow the participation of the JNUSU .
The AISA representatives 1n the .JNUSU were also more interested in organizing AISA programmes under 'bekhauf azaadi' rather than undeitaking collective initiatives under the JNUSU banner. During that period, the JNUSU made several · written submissions to the Government functionaries, the Justice Verrl)a Commis'sion, objections to the f~ulty Ordinance as well as a submission to the Lok Sabha Speaker and Minister of Women and Child · Development for safeguarding the autonomous and democratic character of the GSCASH. The AISA representatives in the JNUSU did not .
shoulder any responsibility in this regard. · .
When the·c.ause became secondary to organizational ban~ers and Hags, the mass participation of the wider public witnessed a decline. Unless we collectively develop a culture of building broad-based unity in struggles and movements, liberating ourselves from the sectarian trappings arising out of narrow organisational interests. powerful movements cannot be built or sustained. This is a lesson that the DSF has drawn from the anti-rape movement. That is why the DSF is emphasizing the need to build an independent and autonomou-s student .
movement. .
The continuing incidents of brutal violence against women and children including the recent incident of the gang-rape of a 20 year old dalil student in Jind, Haryana give us cause to integrate the struggle for gender justice with the struggles .
misunderstanding between alady and her clients" against other forms of social discriminations based on caste. .
. region, religion etc. which often overlap with gender violence. ® CPI(M) MLA Anisur Rahman inquired about the "rate" of .
The recent death of. lllavarasan in Tamil Nadu also shows raping Mamata Banerjee .
how the menace of 'honour' crimes is spreading iri cur .
.
' \ ' .
.
.
PaRCha - JNU - All Organisations - 2013 ID-54849
.
Councilor Candidates.
.
Central Panel .
sss President Ishan Kingshuk.
II .
Vice Presiden! .
Zeeshan M ansi General Secretary Sudeep Pratim Johl! Secre!GIJ' -Sonarn Shubhanshu Tej ashi .
DSF AGENDA FOR 2013-14: GENDER JUSTICE .
Anti-Rape Movement: December 2012 .
.
Over the past one year, the JNU student community has been in the thick of continuous activities and debates on rising violence against women. The spontaneous protests started by the JNUSU against the December 16, 2012 gang-rape was instrumental in triggering off a massive people's movement in Delhi to resist rising crimes against women, which found resonance across the country. The participation of students and youth, both men and women, gave a new impetus to the demands for justice for women." Despite repression, these protests were unprecedented in recent decades. The slogan of 'azaadl given in JNUSU protest actions reverberated on the lips .
of thousands of students and youth across the country. The government was compelled to institute the Justice Verma Committee in 2012, enact the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act by February and The Criminal Law (Amendment) Act in March 2013 that gave recognition to a spate of neglected crimes against women like acid attack, stalking, public stripping, voyeurism, trafficking and gang rape. The existing laws on rape were strengthened and many punishments enhanced. .
Despite these advances, a reluctant government did not implement the full recommendations of the Justice Verma Committee regarding changes in the Constitution, governance, policing and initiate electoral and educational reforms for prevention of crimes against women. The government fell short of making laws against marital rape and refused to prosecute security forces for sexual crimes in AFSPA governed areas. It . also increased the age of consent for sex from 16 years to 18 yeats, thereby~ providing legal sanction to khap panchayats and r(loral p~licing QJ'igades for sexual (egulation and victirniLation of young people even for consensual sexual actlvrtY. Despite over 1 lakh rape cases pending in the criminal justice system, the government is yet to provide sufficient mechanisms for fast-tracking all 'cases. Most importantly, ·the government and the police ganged up in denial of their responsibility and culpability for the rising crimes ag_ainst women.in the country. The struggleto resist crimes against women and ensure justice for women therefore needs to be carried forward with zeal and .
determination. .
The country also witnessed the shameless sexist rants of .
patriarch~! elements across political parties: .
® Congress MP Abhijit Mukherjee mocked the protesting women in Delhi as ''dented an.d painted" .
.
. .
., .
' .
® RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat justified rapes by declaring that they happened only in westernised "India" and not in traditional bBharat" .
® Trinamul Congress M~ Kakoli Ghosh Dastidar discounted the Park Street rape incident as "a .
SLL&CS .
SIS .
Anand .
.
Chimat .
Bibek Fayaz .
Hamid .
.
Nemkim .
Jawaid .
.
Pranjal .
Riya Pushpika .
.
The Prime Minister, Manmohan Stngh embarrassed h1mself with his ~theek hai" remark in front of camera while the Leader of Opposition Sushma Sw~raJ declared that rape survivors '-Nere no more than "zinda lash" The Justice Verma Committee further noted that in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections political parties gave tickets to 6 contestants who were charged with rape -one each from RPP, RCP, BSP, JMM and two independents. Additionally, 34 candidates contested with other charges of violence against women -including 2 each from CPI (Ml) Liberation, TMC and SSP. No wonder, that the political establishment has been reluctant in acting against the likes of Asaram Bapu on charges of sexual assault of a minor. Gender insensitivity and patriarchal .
attitudes continue to dominate Indian polity, across party lines: .
.
The anti-rape movement also provides us cause for introspection. The movement was afflicted by some internal problems within progressive sections. During the protests, the 'Justice for Women Now' platform was formed comprising of different organizations of students, youth and women alongside cultural groups, dalit organizations, concerned citizens and other rights groups. However, rather than uniting for a common cause, the CPI(M)-affiliated AIDWA boycotted this platform and worked overtime to try and isolate the JNUSU because its President was from the DSF. In ·repeated programmes of women's organizations. including the Women's Day programme on March .
8, other women activists-had to persuade the AIOWA to agree to allow the participation of the JNUSU .
The AISA representatives 1n the .JNUSU were also more interested in organizing AISA programmes under 'bekhauf azaadi' rather than undeitaking collective initiatives under the JNUSU banner. During that period, the JNUSU made several · written submissions to the Government functionaries, the Justice Verrl)a Commis'sion, objections to the f~ulty Ordinance as well as a submission to the Lok Sabha Speaker and Minister of Women and Child · Development for safeguarding the autonomous and democratic character of the GSCASH. The AISA representatives in the JNUSU did not .
shoulder any responsibility in this regard. · .
When the·c.ause became secondary to organizational ban~ers and Hags, the mass participation of the wider public witnessed a decline. Unless we collectively develop a culture of building broad-based unity in struggles and movements, liberating ourselves from the sectarian trappings arising out of narrow organisational interests. powerful movements cannot be built or sustained. This is a lesson that the DSF has drawn from the anti-rape movement. That is why the DSF is emphasizing the need to build an independent and autonomou-s student .
movement. .
The continuing incidents of brutal violence against women and children including the recent incident of the gang-rape of a 20 year old dalil student in Jind, Haryana give us cause to integrate the struggle for gender justice with the struggles .
misunderstanding between alady and her clients" against other forms of social discriminations based on caste. .
. region, religion etc. which often overlap with gender violence. ® CPI(M) MLA Anisur Rahman inquired about the "rate" of .
The recent death of. lllavarasan in Tamil Nadu also shows raping Mamata Banerjee .
how the menace of 'honour' crimes is spreading iri cur .
.
' \ ' .
.
.