Analysis:

Published: 18th Dec, 2019

Beijing Platform for Action (1995), and since;

Beijing Declaration 1995 was ratified by 189 governments, each committing itself to a world where women and girls could exercise freedoms and choices, including a life free of violence, rights to go to school, participate in decisions and earn equal pay for equal work.
In the years since, definitions of “gender" has expanded to include not just women and girls, but Trans, non-binary, and intersex people.

Gender gains

Gains in education and health: Gender gains have been undeniable in areas such as education and health.
- According to the World Bank, Global primary school completion rates are 91% for boys and 90% for girls, and in secondary school, 76% for boys and 77% for girls.
- Female life expectancy worldwide has increased from 70 in 2000, to 74 in 2017.
- All India Survey on Higher Education reports female college enrolment in India, at 48.6% in 2018, up from 47.6% the previous year.
New laws, including India’s domestic violence and workplace sexual harassment laws, have been passed.

Situation is still grim

Rise in crimes: National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) figures show a 6% rise in crimes against women in 2017. Laws and policies have not kept up and there is need for a “mind-set change".
New challenges: Some old problems, such as unpaid work and low female labour force participation (FLFP) still continue. India’s FLFP, at 24%, is among the lowest in South Asia.
- Along with older challenges of violence and low participation of women in public life, newer challenges have emerged, including cyber bullying, climate change and migration.
Current status: Globally, 7% of women have been sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner and as many as 38% of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner.
- The National Family Health Survey (NFHS-4) suggests that 30% women in India in the age group of 15-49 have experienced physical violence since the age of 15.
- NFHS-4 reveals that 6% women in the same age group have experienced sexual violence at least once in their lifetime.
- About 31% of married women have experienced physical, sexual or emotional violence by their spouses.
Status on rape and reporting: India’s average rate of reported rape cases is about 3 per 100,000 of the population. However, this differs in places like Sikkim and Delhi, which have rates of 30.3 and 22.5, respectively, while Tamil Nadu has a rate of less than one.
- According to Livemint, about 99% cases of sexual violence go unreported due to social stigma surrounding such offences
Perpetuators are mostly related: NCRB 2016 recorded that majority of cases under crimes against women were reported in the following order; ‘Cruelty by Husband or His Relatives’ (32.6%) > ‘Assault on Women with Intent to Outrage her Modesty’ (25.0%) > ‘Kidnaping & Abduction of Women’ (19.0%) > ‘Rape’ (11.5%).
- Clearly, domestic violence is one of the most prevalent forms of violence against women in India.