Need for law against victim shaming: Activists

Thiruvananthapuram: In the wake of MLA P.C. George’s defamatory statement against the rape survivor nun, activists are of the opinion that there is need for legislature to make laws that protect victims against shaming. The nun, according to police, was not willing to go forward with a case. Kottayam District Police Chief Hari Sankar said, “It is a perceptional crime. Case had to be charged as per the perception of the nun.”

The only legal remedy, when someone attempts to question the character of a survivor, is for the survivor themselves to approach the court with a defamatory petition. However, expecting a survivor, already harrowed by the assault, to endure the travails of a court case is not fair, say activists.

There should be legislation to ensure that the law enforcement agency has the right to file a defamatory case suo motu, says Sandhya Janardhanan. She recalls how a similar situation arose in the case of the Suryanelli case, when Sibi Mathews, a retired IPS official, allegedly made defamatory remarks. “The police official had shared details that nearly revealed the identity of the survivor. 

Though activist Mercy Alexander had filed a complaint against it, the legal advice we received was that only when the person who has been defamed files a complaint, a defamatory case is valid. We realised getting the survivor to do it was difficult, even though we had information that the person was severely affected by the comments. This legal provision is not helpful. It is not from the survivor’s point-of-view,” she says.  

The ‘Kerala Protection of Privacy and Dignity of Women Bill’, which was under the consideration of the government in 2013, was not taken forward. It doesn’t really include shaming of sexual assault survivors, but the government can consider redrafting it. 

Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan had told DC that considering the need for such a law, he can recommend the government to consider passing the Bill.
But, what would really matter here, is political will, says activist Aleyamma Vijayan. “There have been laws for protecting women, but it is political will that is required,” she says.