Why MeToo movement in India must be supported and its lacunae be addressed
For the last few weeks, the MeToo movement has taken the country storm with many women calling out their sexual predators in the Bollywood, media and politics. The force of the movement is so powerful that it has caused some of the alleged sexual predators to step down from their managerial posts on the grounds of moral responsibility.
Some of the horrific and nauseating accounts of sexual abuse those sitting in the position of power and having higher stature in different walks of life have definitely left the people in complete shock.
With each passing day, as a result of domino effect, victims of sexual harassment are coming up to share their own stories of trauma and abuse that they had been brushing under the carpet for so many months, years and even decades due to the fear of either losing their jobs and facing the severe consequences of speaking up against the powerful or the character assassination and judgments of the people making their lives even more traumatic.
First and foremost, we must appreciate the courage of women who have come out openly to share their alleged stories of sexual harassment and molestation their bosses or colleagues at any point of time in their lives.
It takes a lot of gut to speak about something as sensitive as sexual harassment, which at times, unfortunately, puts the victim’s life at stake in many ways. Instead of being judgmental and cynical about the women who have been allegedly sexually abused, the least we can do is to stand in solidarity with them for showing the courage. It will encourage more and more women to break the shell of fear and call out their sexual abusers.
Having said that, the problem with this MeToo movement is the possibilities of this noble and powerful movement being misused some people to further their vested interests bringing someone innocent down. On the top of that the burgeoning tendency of media to do the trial even without hearing the other side of the story may make the situation even worse.
And the time all the claims are cross-checked through legal recourse, the damage caused to the accused is irreparable. Therefore, though we must not be judgmental about the women who come out to speak against their alleged abusers, at the same time, the accused must be heard with utmost seriousness.
In addition to this, what is even more worrisome is a few cases of equating every flirtatious behaviour or sometimes even a proposal to the sexual harassment. Though sexual harassment of any kind is reprehensible and unacceptable in a civilized society, particularly in India where women have had the history of being revered like deities, every act of sexual harassment is distinct and thus should be viewed and analyzed in right context.
For example, the accusations against the Union Minister M.J Akbar more than 10 woman journalists and the accusation against the Chetan Bhagat a woman journalist are two different scenarios with different gravity. As to whether to put the conduct of Chetan Bhagat into the category of sexual harassment or not is debatable.
Therefore, it must be also noted as to what comes under sexual harassment and what does not. Because if the media trials continue to take place and even a single innocent person’s personal and professional life get shattered, the very purpose of the MeToo movement will be defeated. And whenever something of this sort happens, people tend to take such matters and complaints too lightly, which bolsters the belief the under the garb of MeToo, some women are using it as a tool to harass and avenge their male colleague, boss or ex-partner.
Currently, I am pursuing B.A(H) Political science from Satyawati College, Delhi University.
I like public speaking, writing and reading in my leisure.
