Despite all the awareness drives to encourage girl child and rights of women, the sad fact remains that women remain vulnerable. While nature has made them physically the weaker sex, society has done its best to ensure that mentally and emotionally they are suppressed. It’s when a horrifying incident occurs that everyone is up in arms, demanding more security and a change of mindset. But then, it remains difficult for women to venture out alone at night. And there’s always a lurking fear in their mind, forcing them to be wary. This also often adversely impacts their career.
Recent incidents of abduction and rape of minors, including a toddler, certainly speaks volumes of sick minds. But for the parents it’s a question of whom to trust. A colleague narrated how his two-year-old daughter refuses to accept anyone but the immediate family members. A huge factor in this unsocial behaviour, he admitted, was the family itself, which did not allow anyone to befriend the child.
While they certainly faced a lot of problems now, with the child clinging to her parents, the colleague said they had little choice. There was no one outside the immediate family that they could trust. All the stories of trusted friends, servants and at times even family members responsible for harming children, particularly girls, has led several parents to be doubly cautious.
In smaller towns and rural areas, many bright young girls are forced to drop out of school for this very reason. A factor behind government’s drive to build toilets in every household across the country is this vulnerability. Women going out to relieve themselves often find themselves victims of molestation and physical violence, including rape. When and where, one often wonders, will this sordid tale end?