Early in February when Radha Sah, 22, a resident of Tikuliya VDC-5 in Saptari District, accused her father of raping her, a group of local women rights activists reached the District Police Office of Saptari, demanding justice for the victim and legal action against the guilty.
Although Radha’s allegations turned out to be false, a conspiracy by her uncle against her father, the alacrity with which rights activists took up her case underscores how active they are to ensure justice for the victims of Gender-based Violence (GBV).[break]
In Saptari, many non-government organizations (NGOs) are active against GBV. On many occasions, they have demonstrated exemplary partnership to ensure justice for the victims of GBV. Whether in exerting pressure on the police to nab the murderers of Babita Yadav or Kajol Yadav – both of them killed for not bringing dowry to their husbands’ homes – rights activists have come together to ensure justice for the victims.
A majority of GBV cases occur in remote villages. In order to reduce GBV cases, the Human Rights and Community Development Academy (HUCODAN), a Saptari-based NGO, has formed Community Mediation Centers (CMC) in 15 VDCs of the district with the help of the Enabling State Program (ESP). Women’s groups, which function under the CMCs, have been organizing campaigns to raise awareness about GBV. If GBV cases occur despite preventive efforts, the CMCs try to resolve the issue at local level.
“We have been settling cases of domestic violence in our own village,” says Lalita Ram, Secretary of a CMC in Brahmapur VDC. “Since we try to ensure that the both warring parties bury their hatchets for once and all, their discord rarely resurfaces in future.”
In Saptari, various organizations like Setu Community Development and Rights Forum (SECDEHURF), Human Rights and People’s Advocacy Centre (HUPEC), Paralegal Committees, CMCs and Single Women Groups have been dealing with cases of domestic violence. Aabha Setu Singh, a rights activist with SECDEHURF, says, “Cases of domestic violence or thrashing women for witchcraft have definitely decreased in recent years; but cases related to dowry are still on the rise.”
In addition to various NGOs, government agencies are also active against GBV in Saptari. Gender Empowerment and Coordination Unit (GECU) at the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers (OPMCM) has been in operation since 2010. The Ministry of Women, Children and Social Welfare (MoWCSW) and the National Women’s Commission (NWC) also play a vital role in fighting GB. Besides, the GECU has developed a National Strategic Action Plan (NSAP) to combat GBV and enhance gender empowerment.
According to the District Police Office of Saptari, altogether 120 GBV cases have been reported in Saptari in the last seven months alone. SP Sanjay Singh Basnet, chief of the Saptari police, claims most of the victims of GBV have got justice. He says the police are working their best to ensure justice for the victims.
SP Singh says the police have left no stone unturned to bring the perpetrators of GBV cases to the book. He claims that the police give high priority to resolve GBV cases.
Surendra Prasad Yadav, Chairperson of HUCODAN, says community-based mediators are active in preventing GBV cases and helping both parties to settle their differences. The CMCs of 15 VDCs in Saptari have so far settled nearly 200 disputes.
Hem Narayan Chaudhary, President of Bar Association at the Appellate Court of Rajbiraj, agrees that GBV cases have decreased in the last few years. But he thinks that awareness about existing laws and policies should be raised and women in rural villages should be empowered to reduce GBV cases.
Uma Pokharel, President of HUPEC, says most women in villages usually prefer to remain silent and speak up against violence only when they cannot endure their sufferings. “Most village women decide to lodge complaints only when they are forced out of their villages,” says Pokharel. “And they don’t even know where to go for filing complaints. They often need others’ help in filing complaints.”
Not only uneducated women, some educated women in village are also unaware of the process of filing complaints. Shweta Mishra, who has a Master’s degree, did not know where to go for justice when she wanted to file a case against her husband, Mintu Mishra, a resident of Rajbiraj-2 in Saptari, four years ago. “It was only when she came in contact with us that we helped her,” says Uma Shankar Dev, a Rajbiraj-based advocate.
Dowry behind most GBV cases
In the Tarai, women are subjected to various forms of violence because of satisfactory dowry. Many women have even lost their lives for not bringing enough dowry to their husbands’ homes in the past.
In August 2010, Kajol Yadav of Maleth VDC in Saptari was killed for not bringing dowry to her husband’s home. Earlier in June 2007, Babita Yadav of Basbiti VDC in Saptari was throttled to death. Similarly, Sikilwati Yadav of Bathnaha VDC in Saptari was killed by her own family for the same reason.
“These cases are just the tip of the iceberg,” says rights activist Abha Setu Singh. “In the last six years, over one dozen women have been killed for not bringing dowry in Saptari district alone.”
In April 2011, Sushila Ram, 20, was beaten to death by her in-laws. Early in the same month, Bibha Kumari, 19, of Chhinnamasta VDC of Saptari, was also killed for dowry. Sunil Sada, a resident of Dharampur VDC-2, killed his wife, Raju Devi Sada, 25, by attacking her with an axe for not bringing dowry.
The tale of Chandni Jha shows how women are suffering because of dowry in the Tarai. It has been nearly 15 years since she spent a night in her husband’s house. Only four days after her marriage to Pankanj Jha, a resident of Boriya VDC-5, and whose father is a well-known professor in Saptari, she was thrown out of home. Chandni, who now ekes out a living by toiling in other people’s houses, was expelled from her house because her family was too poor to give dowry. Her husband has already married another woman, rubbing salt into her wounds.
Source: HUCODAN,
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HUPEC President Pokharel says 90 per cent of GBV cases are related to dowry. As most GBV cases are caused by or related to dowry, rights activists stress the need for dealing with it as the main cause of domestic violence. They agree that a blanket approach to fighting GBV, whether at local or national level, simply does not work.
More efforts needed
The tradition of dowry has been rooted in society so deeply that no section of society is free of it. Mina Thakur, former president of Maithil Mahila Parishad, an organization of women in the Mithila region, says, “The families of brides are equally responsible for this social ill. They are bothered about the status of the groom, which also contributes to dowry tradition.”
Parents think that they should get the return of the investment that they make in educating their sons. Therefore, they demand from Rs 300,000 to Rs 1.5 million with the bride’s family if their sons are engineers. Similarly, they demand up to Rs one million if their sons are doctors. The brides’ families have to pay up to Rs 800,000 if their would-be in-laws are overseers or officers in government service.
Kishor Kumar Yadav, a social worker, says the lack of anti-dowry laws also encourages people to fleece the families of their daughters-in-law. “Tradition of dowry can be abolished only if the new generation takes up initiatives,” says Yadav.
Deo is a freelance journalist based in Rajbiraj, Saptari.
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