Women in the papers

We took the train to Agra today to see the Taj Mahal for the day. I have been here before 12 years ago, but this is a place that you can visit 1,000 times and never tire of its stunning beauty. For those unfamiliar with the story, it was built by Shah Jahan in the 1600's as a tomb for his wife who died in childbirth (her 14th!).

It is lamentable that in a country that can produce such a moving memorial to a women, men commit hideous atrocities against women everyday On the 15th page of the paper yesterday, I read of a story that curdled my blood. In a village in UP (east of Delhi), a man caught his teenage daughter and a village boy in a "compromising position" in the fields. While the rest of the village tried to decide what punishment should befall these two teenagers, the father, tied the two kids to a bed by their wrists then beheaded first the boy then the girl. The article went so far as to mention that the boy's body was claimed and cremated by his family. There was no one to claim the girl's. There also was no mention of criminal charges against the "father."

There are also many articles, mainly by women, about how Delhi generally unsafe for women. When a woman defended herself with karate against two would-be-assailants on a crowded street (while hundreds stood around and watched while she called for help), it made the paper. Thankfully, I have only been the victim of vulgar looks from men, mainly in Delhi. These filthy, vile creatures lurk around the tourist areas and won't hesitate to crane their necks, point, and gawk at westerners, even modestly dressed ones. I never experienced such things when I lived in Calcutta for a month or anywhere else in India for that matter. I can't wait to be out of Delhi for good.

There are a few positives that I have noticed as a change from my previous visits to India. There is more mention of domestic violence as a crime in the papers. There are large billboards with help numbers for women. Also, there are a few articles in the paper about military men being disciplined for abuses against females in the military. These are steps ahead in a constant battle for women's equality.