An letter on the issue of Rape in India from Anonomous

It is fascinating how the western media is struggling manfully to turn this story into a plain rape case.

Let me explain why this is much more, and should be reported as such.

On the same day as this couple were attacked a TV news team filmed a woman being gang raped on a street in another Indian city, and broadcast the film, without assisting the woman, or calling the police.

Assaults on woman are endemic across India. Legally they are often classed as "Eve Teasing", even when they end in death.

This couple were left unassisted at the roadside as many people watched them - including women car drivers - without calling the police. This explains the disparity between the victims' stated time and that recorded by the police.

The coach had driven through many police check points whilst the rape was continuing. Its blacked out windows were clearly illegal. Its owner had used a false address to license it - for which corruption in the transport department is being investigated.

Delhi has the highest rape rate of all Indian cities. The police - under the control of the federal government rather than the Delhi city government, which is headed by a woman who has vocally criticised the police shortcomings - claim they have too many important people to protect in the capital to police the city adequately. Police in India, as with all government functions and most courts, are systematically corrupt - money talks and many in Delhi have a lot of it. The country is a police state, with every aspect of life being under police control, but with universal opportunities for corruption. One result is that almost no laws supposedly to protect women are enforced. For example women's police stations are staffed entirely by men, and their cells are used for men.

The police tried to order the investigating magistrate to limit her questions, about which she officially complained. Then the head of Delhi police flatly said she was lying.

Rape trials usually take about five years to come to court, with much pressure put on victims and families to drop complaints and settle with the perpetrators. Pressure from police often includes for victims to marry the rapists.

It emerged that shortage of chemicals at the police forensics laboratory means that many rape investigations lose the evidence collected, or do not have it available for years.

When mass protests sparked by 24 hour news channels and social media took place nationally, the police in central Delhi over-reacted, closing many underground stations and causing such chaos in the capital that the prime minister had to conduct business at home - including a meeting with the Russian President. A police officer died during the protests and an attempt was made to blame the demonstrators. All Delhi police were forced to donate a day's pay to compensate his family.

The high court intervened to supervise the police investigation and create a new, very fast track court for rape cases.

A regional state leader who is of the governing party went on television at this time saying that "just because India gained independence at midnight doesn't mean women should feel free to go out at night". The President of India's son, a member of the national parliament, also stated that the this was all a false issue involving "dented and painted" women who should party in their own homes. No one seems to know what he meant by "dented". His sister apologised for him.

The prime minister (a man) and the head of the governing party (a woman) both made television appeals for calm.

The rape victim was suddenly, and unaccountably - on political rather than medical orders - flown out to Singapore, where she died. She was flown back to an extremely rushed cremation - it was forced to be delayed by an hour to abide by laws forbidding cremation before dawn after protests by her family.

Indian women (and many men who care too) are in revolt against a culture where victimisation of women is increasing whilst women elsewhere seem to make progress. Unfortunately improving things for women is seen by most men in India as a western idea, and against the nationalism that brought the nation's independence in 1947 and which is rising and rising with the country's economic advance. Thus whilst men watch porn on their iPads in parliament and wear western dress, women and girls have to represent the family honour, have to dress traditionally, and politicians feel able to talk about banning women from having mobile phones on moral grounds. The overthrow a few years ago of the illegality of homosexuality has led to rapid freedom and advance for gay men, making the worsening situation of women more frustrating. Laws against selective abortion of females are almost unenforced, as is the law against requiring dowries for a girl's marriage (which leads to the literally millions of aborted females, and numerous other female deaths). In a country where parliament conducted almost no business in its last session, the contrast with past promises, and what education, and advances in other counties show should be the case, has become unbearable.

This is more than a court case for rape.