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00:00India is one of the most dangerous places in the world for women and even young girls.
00:07That perpetrator, that man didn't even spare a child.
00:11What they did to me was wrong.
00:13They both raped me.
00:15Despite stronger laws and global outrage, sexual violence is on the rise.
00:21Most perpetrators face little to no consequences.
00:26In big cities like Kolkata, protests are growing.
00:30But in rural areas, cases of rape, including those involving children, are often buried
00:35in silence, left without justice.
00:38When I asked the police to write rape in my daughter's report, they refused.
00:42They wouldn't listen to me.
00:55I am visiting Madhya Pradesh, a state in central India that consistently reports high rates
01:01of sexual violence against minors, especially girls, year after year.
01:07In a small town located in the countryside, I am meeting with the women of this household.
01:13To ensure privacy, we've changed the names of victims and their families in this report,
01:18but not those of perpetrators.
01:21The mother of six-year-old Masoom tells me a man from the neighbouring village raped her daughter.
01:28I was cooking and her grandmother was washing the dishes.
01:32We didn't hear a thing.
01:34My daughter was reading an Urdu lesson in the shop and playing, just like she did every day.
01:39She came inside, crying, and told us a man had come and taken her pyjamas off.
01:45She was bleeding profusely from her private parts.
01:49We understood what had happened.
01:52The man had threatened to kill her if she made any noise.
01:56The incident devastated the family.
02:01My daughter is so innocent and smart, yet this happened to her.
02:06She was admitted to the hospital for over two weeks.
02:13She's now scared to be near her father as well.
02:16She doesn't sleep next to him.
02:20Is she scared of men?
02:22Yes, she fears men and boys now.
02:27That perpetrator, that man, didn't even spare a child.
02:31This is a busy street.
02:33People live right across the way.
02:35We never imagined something like this could happen here.
02:42Masoom's grandmother Sultana is concerned about the lasting impact
02:46this traumatic event will have on her granddaughter.
02:50She used to be an active and happy child.
02:52She was charming and full of life.
02:55That joy and brightness have vanished from her face since the incident.
03:01She doesn't eat, or whatever little she does eat is not making her strong.
03:08I want no other daughter's life to be destroyed the way he destroyed hers.
03:24Masoom's rapist, 27-year-old Ram Gopal, was tried and sentenced to life imprisonment
03:30under POCSO, the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act.
03:34This framework was established to fast-track the trial and punishment of the offender.
03:39The maximum punishment is the death penalty if the victim is under 12, but it's rarely
03:44carried out.
03:46Many accused offenders don't even land in jail.
03:48Chandralekha is 14 and belongs to the historically marginalized Dalit community, the lowest in
03:54the caste hierarchy.
03:56She tells us a powerful upper-caste man sexually assaulted her.
04:01I was returning home from selling tea one evening.
04:04That's when he stopped me and forced me to go with him.
04:07Afterwards, I left and ran away.
04:13According to rights groups, Dalit women are frequently targeted by upper-caste men who
04:18harass them knowing there will be few, if any, consequences.
04:23Researchers have found that rape is sometimes used as a weapon against Dalit women to assert
04:27dominance.
04:29Chandralekha's father is now facing intimidation.
04:33I am under a lot of pressure.
04:35I have not bowed to it.
04:37I am fighting back.
04:38They are threatening to kill me.
04:41The rapist said to me, I am upper caste and you are at the bottom.
04:45He uses a lot of caste as slurs.
04:48He said, you are lower caste and we will make sure you suffer.
04:53I said, do what you will.
04:55A 2020 report found that law enforcement, often staffed by upper-caste men, frequently
05:05ignore crimes committed against Dalit women.
05:08In Chandralekha's case, the police allegedly instructed her family to file a harassment
05:13complaint instead of one for rape.
05:15This allowed the accused to obtain bail and intimidate her family.
05:20Even if he's tried, the punishment is likely to be less severe.
05:25Did the police take your testimony and act on it?
05:30When I asked the police to write rape in the report, they refused.
05:36They only arrested him after 15 days when I called the women helpline.
05:41Shortly after, he was released on bail.
05:47Is it because they are not applying the penal code for rape in the police report?
05:51No, they are not.
05:54They won't listen to me.
05:55They said, why should we follow your instructions?
05:58Chandralekha's mother says their family is facing not only pressure to settle the case
06:03out of court, but also ostracization from the village.
06:07Survivors of rape are often shamed and stigmatized as if it were their fault.
06:13Social isolation is often a consequence.
06:17How has this incident affected you and your family?
06:22Our ration shop got shut down.
06:24Out of fear, we all stay home and do not go to the fields to work.
06:27We sold all our livestock to be able to fund this case.
06:29If we don't work, what can we afford to eat?
06:32He destroyed my daughter's life.
06:35Chandralekha was always a brilliant student, but she doesn't dare go to school anymore.
06:42What punishment do you want for him?
06:45He should be hanged.
06:47Sexual violence in rural areas often fails to make headlines, but in cities, it can spark
06:53massive public outrage, like in the recent case of the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata.
06:58Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was forced to take a stand.
07:03As a society, we must think seriously about the atrocities against our mothers, daughters
07:10and sisters.
07:12Our country is angry.
07:17Despite statements like this, allegations of sexual violence against women concern even
07:22members of his own party.
07:25Critics say poor police investigations, institutional backing for perpetrators and delays in the
07:31legal system are agitating the problem.
07:34Nearly 39,000 cases of child rape and penetrative assaults were reported in 2022, but most incidents
07:43still go unreported, one of the reasons reporting often isn't effective.
07:48A study found that only 3% of registered child rape cases resulted in convictions in 2022.
07:57This local courthouse is tasked with delivering justice for child rape cases.
08:02Lawyers sit at these makeshift desks.
08:05Although the court is supposed to fast-track such cases within a year, it is overwhelmed
08:10by the sheer volume of other legal matters on its docket.
08:15Vaibhav Bhatnagar is a defence lawyer who works here.
08:19This is a rural area, so there's often a tendency to compromise.
08:26In cases of rape or sexual assault, the families are threatened with force or pressured by money.
08:33That is why the conviction rates are low.
08:36And there is only one session judge who looks at all these different cases.
08:42So dates are few and far between, and it hampers a speedy trial.
08:48Long, drawn-out court trials scare families, like in the case of 15-year-old Sarita, who
08:54was abducted, held captive and gang-raped.
08:57What they did to me was wrong.
09:01They both raped me.
09:02They took away my phone so I could not call my brother.
09:07Sarita's brother helped the police find the perpetrators, but the road to getting justice
09:12for his sister is daunting.
09:14I have to go in whenever the police call, for every small step, a signature here, a
09:20statement there.
09:21Now the police say it will take at least a year before punishment.
09:23I make only 50,000 rupees or about 535 euros per year.
09:28I'm the only earning member of the family.
09:30If I stay home, who will make money?
09:33That the root of the rape crisis are patriarchal attitudes that consider women to be subordinate
09:40to men, says Monika Singh.
09:42She is a local police officer who started an initiative to raise awareness about sexual
09:46crimes.
09:47Today, she is at a school talking to adolescent boys.
09:50When a crime happens, we question the girl.
09:54She must have worn such clothes.
09:56She must have ventured out late at night.
09:58That's what happens, right?
09:59So who finds themselves blaming her?
10:02Is that your mindset?
10:04We have to get in our heads that women are equal to men, and we must respect them as
10:09equally as men.
10:16We tell them which crime leads to which punishment, so that fear should stop them from committing
10:21crime.
10:22We also tell them that their gender does not put them ahead of girls, nor does it put girls
10:27behind.
10:32She also gives talks to girls.
10:34He will first stare at you, then he might try to touch you.
10:42If you remain silent, he will feel like he can do more.
10:49She empowers schoolgirls to speak up.
10:52We can defend ourselves.
10:55We should learn some self-defense, like karate.
10:59Many girls are scared to report due to stigma from society, that it will bring a bad name
11:03to us and our family.
11:04If there's harassment, we should report it, so that it stops there and doesn't lead to
11:08a grave crime.
11:11Family or neighbors would often say it's our fault.
11:14But now we stare back at the harassers, so they start looking down.
11:19In a nearby town, these social activists take to the streets to perform plays centered around
11:24sexual violence.
11:25One goal is to challenge men's thinking.
11:28What can you do alone?
11:30This is a man's world.
11:31What can you do alone?
11:34I will fight.
11:36I will fight for my daughter and get her justice.
11:39The first time they witness our play, it's strange for them, because generally they like
11:44to hush up any talk about rape.
11:47But by the end of the play, they understand that speaking up is the right thing to do
11:51and they should apply it to their lives.
11:55Women's masculinity means standing up for women's rights or against them.
11:58A better society, a better nation can only be created when everyone's daughters and sisters
12:04are protected.
12:05There's no doubt, this is a huge challenge.
12:12Even so, they will keep striving to try and make India a safer place for Masoom, Chandralekha,
12:19Sarita and thousands of other girls like them.
12:25For more UN videos visit www.un.org