By: Shahid Majeed Mir
Is being a girl a punishment? Is being a girl means losing her own self respect and still working for her family, for others? Is being a girl means to spend her life in just four walls of her house? The questions being asked are because of the irrational and undesirable behaviors of men in and outside homes, which every second girl has to face daily in her routine life. This kind of unexpected behavior is known as Sexual Harassment. Sexual harassment is intimidation, bullying or coercion of a sexual nature, or the unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment could take place anywhere, at any time, by anyone and in any form.
It could happen at public places, school, educational institutes, workplace, even at home. Sexual harassment can be verbal (comments about your body, spreading sexual rumors, sexual remarks or accusations, dirty jokes or stories), physical (grabbing, rubbing, flashing or mooning, touching, pinching in a sexual way, sexual assault) or visual (display of naked pictures or sex-related objects, obscene gestures). Sexual harassment can happen to girls and boys. Sexual harassers can be fellow students, teachers, principals, janitors, coaches, and other school officials.
The victims of sexual harassment are mostly girls/women. It indicates that it is not safe for girls to move out of their houses. They are harassed everywhere might be it an educational institute or workplace. Even age is not a concern. Either a little school going girl or a middle aged lady all are same in the eyes of harassers . Harassers are just like hungry beasts who just want a prey to satisfy their hunger.Every second girl in the world has to face such situations daily. One of the difficulties in understanding sexual harassment is that it involves a range of behavior, and is often difficult for the recipient to describe to themselves, and to others, exactly what they are experiencing. Moreover, behavior and motives vary between individual harassers.
Effects of sexual harassment can vary depending on the individual, and the severity and duration of the harassment. Often, sexual harassment incidents fall into the category of the “merely annoying.” However, many situations can, and do, have life-altering effects particularly when they involve severe/chronic abuses, and/or retaliation against a victim who does not submit to the harassment, or who complains about it openly. Indeed, psychologists and social workers report that severe/chronic sexual harassment can have the same psychological effects as rape or sexual assault. Sexual harassment is illegal. If a girl is being harassed then she need not to be afraid but try to fight against it and get the harasser punished. If she is being sexually harassed then she should tell someone who could help her.
As we know that hardly a day spends when Radio, television and Newspapers does not show such kind of incidents in the society, now the question is how we can eradicate this problem in our society. Because everybody (womens) has the rights to live comfortably. It is not the responsibility of the government only but the youth can also take part in order to eradicate this problem. Our government should keep the colleges separately for the females and also the bus services. I think if the government of India will take this step I think this step will help in order to eradicate these issues.
Even after so many efforts of the Government of India the cases for sexual harassment have seen no decline. The people who are assigned for our help, that is the cops and Government employees, are now themselves are seen as harassers in many cases. The provisions contain several loopholes which can be exploited easily by the harasser in his favor. Clearly the provisions and laws need to be more comprehensive to provide a means of justice to those who have been victims and a means of protection for those who could be potential victims.
In conclusion having said that I would make an important point here that if we believe that a few simple steps could be easily introduced to reduce the chances of women becoming victims of sexual violence. Among them, the creation of a ‘request stop’ scheme, allowing women to get off closer to their destination late at night and early in the morning; better-lit bus stops, more buses and trains on the road at night, to boost the frequency of service and to reduce waiting time at transit points and also the Co education system should be finished especially in higher education colleges and in schools………
Shahid Majeed Mir
Tangcheck Lolab
Civil Service Aspirant
email mirshahid363@gmail.com
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