Tag: India

Indian Rape Victim Dies After Horrific Revenge Attack

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

Another horrific attack in Uttar Pradesh led to the death of a twenty-three year old woman rape victim while traveling to attend a court hearing. Police accuse five men, two identified by the victim as her previous rapists, of stalking her as she prepared to board a commuter train. They doused her with kerosene then set her alight.

She then suffered having to walk nearly a kilometer afterward to summon police via telephone. She was medivaced to New Delhi having received burns to ninety-five percent of her body before suffering cardiac arrest and succumbing to her injuries.

The attack not only highlights a combative approach by some members of society toward the rights of women, but also conveys the shortcomings of a burdened legal system that in some ways facilitates retribution against victims and vigilantism against the accused. It is another, probably less recognized cost of the lack of speedy trial protections in Uttar Pradesh.

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Another Useful Perspective For The Controversy Surrounding Taking a Knee At US Sporting Events

By Darren Smith, Weekend Contributor

Often we can find value in the wisdom of other cultures, especially when we have arrived at an impasse where opposing groups cannot find common ground and the same arguments tend to dominate the discussion. Often this results from the refusal or inability to find outside evidence or analysis.

I believe eventually such an impasse over the NFL kneeling controversy will become moot as the interest in such displays will eventually go away, like many other movements. People eventually move on to other controversies. Yet for those who desire to continue to debate the matter, a family member of mine suggested watching the following video produced in India that structurally presents the same type of controversy–of whether or not to stand during their national anthem at sporting events.

What I found fascinating was seeing the expression of the two sides’ positions through the lens of one of the cultures in India, and especially the contrast between an element representing the traditional thinking versus a younger generation having a different definition of fairness and inclusiveness.

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Indian Village Council Sentences Two Sisters To Be Raped As Punishment For Brother Running Away With Woman From Higher Caste

1024px-Flag_of_India.svgAccording to various media reports and Amnesty International, an all-male village council in India sentenced two sisters, including a 15 year old girl, to be raped as punishment for their brother running away with a married woman from a higher caste. The accounts state that Meenakshi Kumari, who is 23, and her younger sister, will then be paraded naked with their faces blackened through the streets as part of this disgraceful, primitive sentence.

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India Ministry Moves To Block Airing Of Documentary On Rape

tfi_a374ada7f4d26fb1c8aba2084f645c7aWhile China is moving to block the airing of a documentary on pollution, India is moving to block the airing of a documentary on the scourge of its country: rape. India has long been accused of having a rape culture where women are blamed for their own victimization and the caste system (and poor legal system) continues to frustrate efforts to hold rapists accountable. That dire situation for women led to the much acclaimed documentary by British filmmaker Leslee Udwin, “India’s Daughter.” The Indian government is so opposed to letting its citizens hear about such abuses that it is now threatening the BBC for airing the banned documentary.
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