She was a 23-year-old physical therapy student who boarded a bus in Delhi last month. Six men locked the door, and savagely raped her for hours, including with a metal rod. They dumped her naked in the street, and after bravely fighting for her life, she died last weekend.

Across India, people are responding in massive protests to say enough is enough. In India a woman is raped every 22 minutes, and few see justice. Globally, a staggering 7 in 10 women will be physically or sexually abused in their lifetime. This horror in Delhi is the last straw — it’s 2013, and the brutal, venal, global war on women must stop. We can start by drawing the line in India.

The government is accepting public comments for the next 48 hours. We urgently need both stronger law enforcement and a massive public education program to change the grotesque but common male attitudes that permit violence against women.

If 1 million of us join the call for action, we can help make this young woman’s horror the last straw, and the beginning of a new hope.

The ringleader of the woman’s rapists coldly says she deserved it because she dared to stand up to him. Blaming the victim and other outrageous attitudes are found across society, including in the police who continually fail to investigate rape. Such views repress women and corrupt men everywhere. Massively funded public education campaigns have radically shifted social behaviour on drunk driving and smoking, and can impact the treatment of women. Tackling the root causes of India’s rape epidemic is vital, alongside better laws and faster legal processes.

Advertising in India is relatively cheap, so a significant funding commitment could blanket airwaves in multiple media markets for a sustained period of time. The ads should target male subcultures where conservative misogyny thrives, directly challenging and shaming those attitudes, ideally using messengers like popular sports figures that carry authority with the audience.

We have just 2 days to influence the official Commission set up to find ways to crack down on India’s wave of sexual violence. If we can show real success in shifting attitudes in India, the model can be applied to other countries. The money spent will more than pay for itself by reducing poverty and promoting development, since treatment and empowerment of women has been identified as one of the greatest single drivers of social and economic progress.

Click HERE to send a message directly to the Indian government.

From opposing the stoning of women in Iran, to supporting the reproductive rights of women in Morocco, Uzbekistan and Guatemala, to lobbying for real action to counter the growing ‘rape trade’ in trafficked women and girls, our community has been on the front lines of the fight to end the war on women.

This new year begins with new resolve in India.

With hope and determination,

Emma, Ricken, Luis, Meredith, Iain, Ian, Marie, Michelle, Alaphia, Allison and the rest of the Avaaz team
 
 

MORE INFORMATION

• India gang-rape: Five suspects charged in Delhi (BBC)
• Verma committee flooded with suggestions on rape (News One India)
• India’s ‘rape culture’ can be changed: women authors (Hindustan Times)
• Activists woe low conviction rate, long trials (Times of India)
• Delhi Gang-Rape Underscores Rising Sexual Violence Against Indian Women (IB Times)
• Rise in rapes across India (ZeeNews)
• 70% of women experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime (UN report)

 

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