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Reported rapes double in India over past year
ABC Radio Australia - December 16, 2013
The report has been released to coincide with the first anniversary of the fatal gang-rape of Jyoti Singh on a New Delhi bus last year. ActionAid Australia's Mark Chenery says the findings are alarming.
"And we should keep in mind that the numbers that we're seeing here are the reported cases," he told Asia Pacific. "The number of reported cases is a lot lower than the actual number of cases."
Mr Chenery says it's difficult to say whether the figures reflect more rapes occurring or more women coming forward. "The mainstream way in which rape is now discussed in India means that it's something that women feel more comfortable coming forward with," he said.
Mr Chenery says he believes attitudes towards women are slowly changing in India. "The fact that women are seemingly coming forward more often at a greater rate, is a really positive sign of progress," he said.
"But there's still a long way to go. (And) there's definitely signs that at least at the public level, that the authorities are taking violence against women more seriously."
ActionAid is calling on India to speed up its court processes. "We're not necessarily seeing signs or any data that suggests that on the whole, these cases have been speeded up," Mr Chenery said.
ActionAid is also pushing for India to establish a 24-hour hotline specifically for rape victims.
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