Stalking is not yet a worry

Nov 16, 2017 Editorial, Features / Columnists

Stalking is not an innocent past time; it is a dangerous form of sexual harassment. This was made clear yet again when a stalker burnt to death an engineer in Chennai after pursuing her against her wishes for nearly a month.
The unemployed man attacked the victim, her mother and sister, an assault that led to Induja’s death. While strong anti-stalking laws in the Indian Penal Code make following, making contact with, trying to foster an interaction or monitoring the movements of a woman a punishable offence, these have not helped women as much as they should have.
Unfortunately, a first-time stalking offence is bailable; subsequent offences are deemed non-bailable. Though there has been a 50 percent rise in stalking over the last three years, the conviction rate is very low. But the truth is that stalking contains within it the seeds of a bigger and more violent crime which can take the form of acid attacks or murder.
Some blame for this must go to mainstream cinema, especially from the south. In these movies, stalking is seen as part of the process of courtship. The notion is that the woman, after initially rebuffing the man, will yield in the end.
Many men do not think that forcing their unwanted attentions on a woman is wrong. The police, too, must share the blame. Popular culture and social mores have conditioned them in such a manner that they do not take seriously allegations of stalking. The stalker is often emboldened by this and rejection tends to result in violent responses as seen in Chennai.
Targets are picked for their vulnerability and on the assumption that the woman in question is unlikely to come forward and report the harassment. According to the law, a single incident of stalking can result in the offender being charged. But this has not proven to be deterrent enough.
In the first six months of this year alone, 259 cases of stalking were registered in Delhi. Stalking is traumatic to the victim even if she is not physically harmed. It often prevents women going to college or work.
The police must speed up filing charges and the offence be made non-bailable in the first instance. Once out, after a first transgression, stalkers have been known to intensify their efforts at harassment. And popular culture must stop portraying what is a crime against women as being nothing more than a harmless rite of romance.
In Guyana, stalking is not as rampant. At least, the public is not aware of such drastic cases. Perhaps with the society being so small, one needs not stalk a woman or vice versa. The small society also reduces the extent of isolation that is common in large societies. There is always someone who is ready to rush to the aid of a victim if he or she feels threatened.
The courts are also quick to grant restraining orders although these have proved ineffective against some men. A man stalked his wife dressed in female garb to douse her with a corrosive substance. He has been charged. He is just one.
But what does the law do in cases of the breach of the restraining order? More often than not, the police fail to respond in a timely manner, thus choose instead to let the victim survive as best she could. If ever there is an arrest, the stalker would get no more than two or three weeks in jail.
What happens in the international world soon influences Guyana. Without a doubt stalking would be another crime in Guyana. Perhaps, this needs not be. It certainly is not prevalent in our corner of the Caribbean.

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