Understand what prompts rape to defeat it, says UK columnist

A columnist of the British paper – The Independent – has in an opinion piece, said it is necessary to first understand where the desire to rape women comes from in order to defeat it

According to Owen Jones, understanding why rapes occur not only in India, but also in other parts of the world “means linking it to a broader continuum of violence against women.”

While strongly condemning the December 16 gang rape of a 23-year-old woman in the Indian capital New Delhi, Jones said: “Those punches, slaps, kicks and bile-filled screams are happening all around us – yes, undoubtedly on our own streets. A quarter of women will face this abuse at some point in their life and – horrifyingly – two women will be murdered by their current or former male partner each week.

He further states: “It’s not just the overt aggression. It’s the sexual harassment and objectification of women by men that provide fertile ground for this violence.”

As a country, he says that the United Kingdom doesn’t take rape survivors seriously.

“A 2009 study revealed that Britain has the lowest conviction rate of 33 European countries: it’s a shockingly pathetic 6.5%. Survivors often struggle with a misplaced sense of shame, of somehow bringing it on themselves, of fear; an all-too pervasive sense of victim-blaming discourages them from coming forward and having to facing down their attacker,” he writes in his opinion piece

In his article, he urges men to speak out too.

“It’s really important that we show solidarity with women, educate each other and challenge prejudice in our ranks. In the US and Australia there are more flourishing movements of men against sexual violence, such as Men Can Stop Rape. But there are similar campaigning groups in Britain such as the White Ribbon Campaign and Respect: they have a crucial role to play, too,” Jones says

He concludes by saying: “There is nothing inevitable about violence against women, here or anywhere. Struggle by courageous women and their allies has already had an impact. But the worst thing we can do is allow our horror at what happened on that Delhi bus to make us complacent. Let the death of the victim inspire everyone – everywhere – to defeat this horror once and for all.”