IIT-M Mishandles Case of Violence Against Woman: Blames the Victim
ACTION ALERT:
Please write to
The Director
Indian Institute of Technology-Madras
Guindy, Chennai
Email: [EMAIL PROTECTED] and [EMAIL PROTECTED]
Protest against the Institute Administration's irresponsible handling of an incident of use of force against a female visitor to the Saarang 2006 festival by a male student.
Here is what happened:
On 27 Jan, Shweta, a female member of Chennai-based youth collective We Feel Responsible, was manhandled by an IIT student (a Saarang student coordinator) when he was trying to forcibly confiscate a video camera in her possession.. Shweta and IIT 2 nd Year student Yash Jain were involved in conducting an audit of the non-biodegradable garbage generated at Saarang, IIT's annual cultural festival. Yash, who is also a coordinator of an initiative called Green Saarang, was carrying the camera to use it for documenting the audit. Other Saarang coordinators, who were concerned that the footage would generate negative publicity and scare away corporate sponsors responsible for the bulk of the non-degradable packaging in the trash, decided to take the law into their hands and seize the camera from Yash. Concerned about the camera, Shweta suggested that the police be called to resolve the matter. This suggestion was rejected. When she tried to hold on to the camera, she was shoved and pushed by the Saarang coordinator.
More than a complaint against the errant student, this is a report about the insensitive manner in which the Dean of Students and the IIT administration treated a woman's complaint about use of force by an IIT student. Rather than enquire into the incident and make amends, the Dean accused Shweta of illegally entering IIT and detained her against her will until she parted with the video tape in the camera. She was shouted at by the Dean, detained in the Dean's office with no women staff present. Intimidated by the atmosphere, Shweta parted with the tape that contained no footage of garbage from the morning's audit. Shweta attempted to persuade the Chief Security Officer to take action against the errant student. However, she was told that such incidents are to be expected in the heat of the moment. The CSO refused to part with the names of the students involved. He said she could do what she wanted and that he would protect his "boys."
The Waste Audit was a follow-up to a similar exercise conducted during Saarang 2005 in order to demonstrate the impact of the cultural festival on the sensitive environment of IIT Madras. IIT Madras is located within a forest area, and has a sizable deer population that is vulnerable to the plastic wastes indiscriminately strewn throughout the campus. Saarang, unlike the folksy Mardi Gras of yesteryears, is a big-ticket cultural festival with multinational corporate sponsors, and blaring juke boxes. Faced with the corporate onslaught, some students even question the extent to which the festival reflects youth culture.
The result of the 2005 waste audit was a film called Hangover, and a report called Trash Culture (http://www.sipcotcuddalore.com/downloads/TC_study.zip ) which not only quantified the biodegradable and non-biodegradable garbage, but also made recommendations to progressively move Saarang to being an environmentally and socially responsible festival. The IIT Administration and Saarang organisers made assurances that they would clean up the festival. . However, rather than clean up its act, IIT-M seems to have decided to prohibit filming of the garbage strewn around the campus.
The impulsive aggression of the young student, while disturbing, is not the primary concern here. Such youth need to be counseled and advised to behave appropriately. What is most disturbing is the attitude and behavior of the Dean and the Chief Security Officer. The Dean ignored and dismissed Shweta's complaints of physical abuse by the student coordinator, and the CSO first made light of Shweta's complaints, saying that in an argument, things like this do happen.
Frustrated by her efforts to seek remedy from the IIT administration, Shweta has filed a complaint with the police. The IIT administration remains unrepentant, and is engaged in a ham-handed cover-up that is turning out to be more damaging for it than it reckoned. For an institution of higher learning, IIT's administration seems particularly ill-equipped to deal with issues of female harassment. This is a dangerous situation, particularly since this will embolden other male students to behave inappropriately with women.
What could have been resolved with a simple acknowledgement of wrongdoing and an apology, or a full enquiry by the Dean into the matter, has turned into a game of threats and manipulation on the part of IIT. The Dean had made up his mind that Shweta's complaints were illegitimate without hearing her story.
Please write letters to the Director of IIT asking that this highly regarded institute show more responsibility and basic decency in dealing with this incident of harrassment of a woman, and initiate steps to impart gender sensitivity counseling to all its security and other staff. A sample letter is given below.
Thanking you for your support,
We Feel Responsible, (Youth Group) Chennai.
Sample Letter
To
The Director
Indian Institute of Technology,
Guindy,
Chennai.
Dear Sir,
We are extremely disturbed by the events at your Institute during Saarang 2006, and by the insensitive manner in which your administration is handling a matter of physical abuse by one of your students on a female visitor named Shweta. This is a serious but relatively straightforward matter which should be handled by making the young student aware of his mistake and asking him to apologize to the woman, and possibly counseling him so that he better understands women's sensitivities. Instead, the authorities, and particularly, the Dean of Students and the Chief Security Officer, have berated her and have dismissed her complaint without enquiring into it, or giving her a hearing. Currently, the Institute is engaged in looking for ways to contain the damage to the Institution's image, rather than remedy the mistake made by its management in not taking Shweta's complaints seriously.
We also understand that she was restrained from leaving the institute, and was alone in the Dean's office without any women staff present. Regardless of intent, such a situation, especially when the men present are berating her, is likely to be extremely intimidating for a young woman.
This matter reflects a grave dereliction of the institute's duty to instil a sense of responsible and decent behavior in its students, especially in the serious matter of violence against women. No matter what the circumstances, it is inexcusable for a man to use force against a woman, and for the authorities to condone this and vow to protect the assaulter is setting a shameful precedent for institutions of high repute such as yours.
We believe that the young student who has allegedly committed the offence needs to be reprimanded and counseled, and made to apologise to the young lady. However, the Institute needs to initiate more severe and serious correctional mechanisms to its management and security staff. We believe that the Institute staff need to undergo intensive sensitisation courses on gender issues and on handling issues of female harassment.
Also disturbing is the closed-door attitude that is being adopted by the Institute to stave off justifiable criticism and constructive action regarding the environmental concerns arising out of the Institute's operations in a eco-sensitive area. Yash Jain, whose initiative it was to introduce Green Saarang in 2005, is being victimised and branded as anti-IIT, even while the Institute tries to deflect attention from its shoddy waste management practices on campus by muzzling free speech.
We hope to hear that this matter has been settled in a responsible and decent way as befits an institute of higher learning. We also hope that the Management does not decide to do away with Saarang. This incident reflects only on the unpreparedness on the part of the Management to deal with issues of female harassment and openness relating to its environmental practices. With the right kind of guidance, IIT students will be able to show-case a Greener and Socially responsible Saarang in the years to come.
With regards,
"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful committed citizens can change the world;
indeed it's the only thing that ever has" - Margaret Mead
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
SAVAD RAHMAN
subeditor,MADHYAMAM daily,
pooppalam, perinthalmanna,kerala,
india
cell:(91)-9846085873
