Women's Bodies Are Not Battlefield: Why Are We Not Angry?

Yesterday we woke up to the extremely distressing news of two women from the Kuki-Zomi community being paraded naked by a mob of men in Manipur. The state's ethnic conflict for reservations has been escalating over months with women being the collateral damage. Reports of assault, rape and murders have been coming out frequently. But politicians or authorities have failed to take substantial action over these casualties. Despite National Commission for Women (NCW) reaching out to authorities in Manipur several times over incidents of violence against women, no response was made. 

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma claimed that said she reached out to Manipur authorities thrice in the last three months over violence inflicted upon women amid ongoing ethnic clashes, but no response was received. While discussing the matter with the media, Sharma shared the letters sent to authorities in the state. She claimed NCW came across the video when surfaced online on 19 July, took suo motu cognisance of the incident, and sought an explanation from authorities on the matter. 

Reportedly, the video which went viral on July 19 was from May 4. The two-month-old video came out on Thursday sending shockwaves in the country. Politicians were amazed and have been condemning the cruelty of the act ever since. The question is why! Why everyone was waiting for something so heinous to happen?

Manipur Viral Video

Manipur was on fire since early May when violence erupted between Meitei and the Kuki-Zomi tribes in Imphal Valley. Over 160 people died with several injured and displaced since ethnic violence broke out on May 3 in Manipur. Why did it take this video to turn the nation's attention to the ongoing Manipur conflict? 

The state had been burning for months. A woman and her son were killed when a mob set an ambulance on fire. In another case, a woman was shot dead outside a school. There have been several cases of harassment of women. Aren't these incidents enough for authorities to take strict action? 

A zero FIR was registered on May 18, in the case of the May 4 video. As per the report by Malayalam Manorama, police were aware of the incident but no action was taken. Manorama on June 7 reported that 'survivor women claimed that the police had allowed the mob to take them captive. Instead of protecting the women, the police had withdrawn from the scene and left the women at the mercy of the mob." The report also claimed eight women were harrassed not just two. 

Isn't it appalling that no arrest was made for over two months? Manipur Chief Minister declared on Thursday that the police arrested the main accused at 1.30 am. Four others were arrested a day after the video from Manipur went viral. If the assailants were so easy to nab, then why no arrest was made in the last two months? Why this pressure was not applied before? Why did it require national outrage to bring this pressure? As the video sparked outrage, the Center ordered Twitter and other social media platforms to remove the video of Manipur women. Was it the easy way to diffuse the matter? 

Women's bodies are not a battlefield

It was disheartening to see the women weeping and begging attackers to show mercy in the video. Why are women's bodies seen as instruments to overpower the weakest? Why do people think exploiting women's bodies will teach lessons to the entire community?  Whenever riots and conflicts took place women bore the brunt of brutality.

In connection to the video, Chief Justice of India Chandrachud stated, “Using women as an instrument in an area of communal strife for inflicting gender violence is deeply, deeply, disturbing and against constitutional democracy."

Let us not forget the cruelty of the India-Pakistan partition and the 2002 Godhra Riots. Bilkis Bano was gang-raped, and her family was murdered right in front of her eyes. She is still fighting for justice while the perpetrators roam free. The one commonality in the Manipur video and Bilkis Bano case is how the system continues to fail us. History is proof of gender violence during communal riots, why authorities did not worry about it. 

Despite women constantly fighting for civil rights and creating a stir in political arenas, they remain invisible to the system and face brutalities. It is time to change the course. 

Views expressed by the author are their own

Suggested Reading: Manipur's Kuki Women Protest In Front Of Amit Shah's Home: 8 Things To Know