Are You Shocked by the Recent Statements Made by Some Politicians?

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Uttarakhand chief minister Tirath Singh Rawat said at a workshop on substance abuse on Tuesday that ‘Ripped jeans’ pave the way for societal breakdown and are a result of the “bad example” parents set for children, which also leads to substance abuse. Not the first time that statements by politicians have gone viral and created a stir in the country

“While the western world follows us, doing yoga … covering their body properly. And we run towards nudity”, said the minister calling the trend “Kyanchi se sanskaar (culture by scissors)”.

He added how was shocked to meet a woman who ran an NGO wearing ripped jeans. “If this kind of woman goes out in the society to meet people and solve their problems, what kind of message are we giving out to the society, to our kids? It all starts at home. What we do, our kids follow.”

How does the choice of clothing have an effect on character and moral values?

Another minister in his government, Ganesh Joshi, demanded that women should give priority to raising their children. “Women talk about all things they want to do in life, but the most important thing for them is to look after their family and children”.

While I contemplate if I should laugh or cry, I realize that a surprise reaction is now normal for us as women of this country. How is this solution, I wonder? Instead of curbing drug supply, punishing harassers, molesters, and rape accused, here the onus is again on the woman to sacrifice her basic choice of clothing, her liberty, privacy, and her fundamental rights of basic existence to protect herself.

As women continue to pave their way with struggles and difficulties in a man’s world, and while the men in authority struggle to find ways to curb crimes against women, the easiest solution they have found is to blame it on women. Not just now. Every time. How easy right?! Also, this is not the first time statements by politicians attacking basic human (read women’s) rights have hit the news.

Here are a few other times politicians have made some bizarre statements that continue to attack basic human rights:

· Boys will be boys, they commit mistakes- Samajwadi Party supremo

· Two men raping a woman cannot be termed as gang rape- Former Karnataka Home Minister

· If a woman is caught (in a rape case), then both she and the boy should be punished- SP’s State President

· Best way to curb India’s population growth is to provide electricity to Indian villages so that couples spend their time watching TV instead of procreating and increasing the population- Former Health and Family Welfare Minister

· Crimes against women won’t happen in “Bharat” or the rural areas of the country. You go to villages and forests of the country and there will be no such incidents of gang-rape or sex crimes- RSS Chief

· Women shouldn’t participate in protests- Chief Justice

· Hindu women shouldn’t do interfaith marriage- UP CM

· Women should just be housewives- RSS Chief

· Girls can reproduce at 15, so why should their marital age be increased from 18 to 21? – MP Congress Leader

The idea of always monitoring women, snatching their liberty and privacy is an easier solution than questioning the incapacity of the police to do their jobs.

Being eve teased? Don’t wear provocative clothes.

Getting raped? Don’t go out at night.

Men will be men; they will commit crimes and rapes.

You just need to be more careful as a woman.

Because men can’t keep it in their pants or control their provocative gaze at lady parts, let’s just ask women to cover up themselves, no matter the comfort level or the weather conditions. That way we men won’t get tempted to look at them.

And when women question this we will objectify them by equating them candies and precious stones which need to be covered or protected.

This is the mentality of many. They refuse to see the problem and when they do, they try to shift blame or come up with convenient, easy solutions that benefit the perpetrator instead of the victim. And if they are people in power, the solution should be one that makes their work easier.

Also Read Why men are unable to handle rejection?

Highlights

A woman’s virginity is still considered as a deciding factor to evaluate her character.

Wedding Night Virginity Test is against a woman’s right to live life with dignity and right to privacy and is a Sexual Assault on Women.

It’s a myth that the hymen gets ruptured only during sexual intercourse.

Is a Woman a Product to check for Defects?

Why is a man’s virginity never questioned?

It’s time to put an end to this humiliating practice of disrespecting women’s sexuality and violation of basic human rights.

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No matter how progressive we are today or how the world talks about feminism and breaking stereotypes towards women, Women are still subjected to humiliation and violation of their rights by the Virginity tests.

Hundreds of women are forced to take virginity tests not only in India and Asian countries but also in Western countries like Canada, Sweden, Spain, and the Netherlands.

A woman’s virginity is still considered as a deciding factor to evaluate her character and is being perpetrated in the name of customs and traditions.

What is a Virginity Test?

A virginity test is a practice that intends to determine whether a woman is a virgin, to ensure that she has never been engaged in sexual intercourse.

How are virginity tests performed?

Different communities around the world use different methods to test the virginity of women.

Some of the commonly used methods are

1. Inspect the hymen and look at its size and shape.

2. The “two-finger test,” involves inserting fingers into the vagina.

Breaking the Myths about Hymen

The hymen is a thin elastic piece of skin that surrounds the opening of the vagina. Every individual hymen is unique in appearance.

Not all women have the same thickness of hymen. Some have very thin hymen without blood vessels, or too thick hymen which may not get ruptured but is just stretched.

Virginity tests are unreliable, sexist, and inaccurate. And yet they persist

It’s a myth that the hymen gets ruptured only during sexual intercourse and results in little bleeding.

Physical activities like cycling, sporting activities or invasive medical procedures, or the use of tampons can tear or stretch the hymen.

A woman may not have had sex previously but may nonetheless not bleed during her first sexual encounter and it has also been quoted that the hymen can heal even after being ruptured.

Virginity tests are unreliable and invasive and notoriously inaccurate as it is extremely difficult to determine whether any change to the hymen is a result of penetrative sex or other activities.

Virginity Testing – Wedding Night Ritual

Virginity testing is a long-standing practice in several regions of the world. We live in a male-centric society and for centuries, men have been making the rules. Most of the women feel that the rules need to be followed or else they would be boycotted from the community.

Some cultures like the Kanjarbhat community, in India, still believe that the practice of virginity test for brides before marriage is a mandatory ritual, which is based on the outdated notions of “purity”.

This 400-year-old custom has been designed to prove that a bride’s sexual encounter with her new husband is her first sexual experience and that her hymen is broken on her wedding night.

According to the custom, newlyweds in the community are handed a white cloth on their wedding night to use during intercourse.

The family or by a council of elders check for the blood stains on the cloth and declare whether the bride is a virgin.

‘Blood on the bed sheet a must’ to certify a woman’s character

A girl passes the test only if her hymen breaks and bleeds on the wedding night. The elders then declare her as “Maal Khara hai” which means “goods are pure”.

Is a Woman a Product to check for Defects?

If she doesn’t, they say “Maal Khota hai” meaning she is “spoiled goods” that she had premarital sex and is subjected to beatings and communal humiliation, and even divorce.

Not all people understand that bleeding during the first sexual intercourse does not always mean that the girl is not a virgin.

How it impacts women?

Conducting virginity tests to know the purity of a woman is against her right to live with dignity and right to privacy. It’s a Sexual Assault.

Though many women are railing against the practice, they are threatened by their family members or partners and are often performed without her consent.

Do I need to prove I am a Virgin? Does this define my character?

Women are subjected to guilt, shame, depression, self-disgust, anxiety, and a negative body image, and in some extreme cases even honor killings if they fail to prove their virginity.

Is there an end to this practice?

Today, most women are refusing to undergo the virginity tests and are even fighting with their families and elders to change the way they see and trust women.

Even men are supporting women to fight the regressive tradition of conducting virginity tests on brides and are protesting and campaigning against ‘virginity tests’ on brides.

The sexual assault of women can be stopped only when you can answer the following questions.

Does the virginity of women matter to lead a happy life? If so,

Why is a man’s virginity never questioned?

Why should a woman always need to go through an exam to prove something about her sexual history?

Why wouldn’t society simply believe what she says?

Just Think About It.

We hope at least this generation will ensure to eradicate this humiliating practice of women’s sexuality and violation of basic human rights.