RECLAIMING THE WOMEN'S COMPARTMENT

Women passengers on Bombay's train system have been touched up, harrassed, assaulted and even killed by men, despite the existence — at least on paper — of women's compartments created to protect and ensure safe travel for women. Below is an account of the campaign of the Bombay Women's Group, the Nari Attyachar Virodh Munch, against the invasion of the women's compartments by men. The article was compiled from information and leaflets of the Forum Against Oppression of Women in Bombay by Shaila of Outwrite (Oxford House, Derbyshire Street, London E2 ENGLAND), where this article was published in November, 1982.

Two years ago a woman teacher travel- Ung to work in the women's compartment was brutally assaulted and killed, her jewellery stolen. Last year, many women, angry at the violence they and others had encountered on the train, met. determined to campaign against it...

A demonstration outside the general manager of the railways' office was held, and the women decided to follow this up with a week long agitation on the train, guarding the compartments themselves. The group said, "We have tended to believe that a demonstration will automatically solve the problem for us. The sense of dependency on fathers, husbands, sons, seems to extend to the authorities. It is time we took charge of our own lives, took command of the situattion..."

During this time, regular leaflets and petitions were being circulated by the women's group, informing others of progress, urging others to join them. In one leaflet they say, "Why should we be subjected to such indignities? Why is this not taken even more seriously than ticketless travelling? Why are there no women police guards in women's compartments? It seems that whatever happens to us, women, is not anybody's concern. BUT IT IS! It is of great concern to women. If all of us do not protest against males invading our compartments, and harassing and humiliating us, who will?...

Women were urged to write letters of complaint to the railway authorities and the police each time they were abused, and to pledge to support other women trying to evict the men out of the compartments. Groups of women took direct action themselves, as they had resolved to do, to guard their compartments for themselves. As they said,
" A l l of us who go to guard the women's compartments in trains are having all types of experiences, some annoying, some satisfying, but always exciting. Since the time the group took their first steps to protest for our rights as commuters, the male invasion was somewhat curbed at the starting point. At subsequent stations, it was another story, bad in some, terrible in others.

"After Bandra station the police just seemed to give up. The men we tried to get out were incensed that women were being assertive. We were subjected to foul language, vulgar gestures, pushing, etc. Some stone throwing and even indecent exposure. Don't worry, we are still safe and sound. Sisterhood is strong after all. The readiness of
women commuters to unite and fight for their rights was tremendous."

A joint meeting between the railway authorities and police and the women finally took place. The results? "The railway police are going to guard women's compartments in the late evenings for four days." Women were asked to monitor this, and to assess its effectiveness. But they were well aware that though the situation might improve for a while, what they were after was for a lasting solution. The railway authorities also promised that wide media coverage would be given to the fact that women's compartments on the trains were for women only. Women were asked to keep an eye open for this too.

The report ends there. What happened after that? We intend to find out and let you all know. To us it is very important that such an action and campaign not only be successful but that women everywhere learn from it.

PORN INCREASES VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Neil Malamuth and Ed Donnerstein, leading researchers on the effects of violent pornography, have completed a review of this area to be published in "Advances in Experimental Social Psychology" (L. Berkowitz, ed. Vol. 15 New York: Academic Press). Their chapter notes the dramatic increase in violent pornography during the '70s iii
both hard-core and soft-core material. Recent studies show that a high percentage of males become sexually aroused by depictions of rape in entertainment media when the woman is shown involuntarily enjoying the rape.

Increases were found in acceptance of violence against women, acceptance of the rape myth that women enjoy being raped, and belief in adversarial sexual relationships. The authors conclude that aggression against women in R-rated (viewing audience restricted to those 18 years of age and older) films and sexual aggression within such "legitimate" magazines as Playboy and Penthouse may have a greater impact even than similar portrayals in hardcore pornography.

Source: Aegis No. 36 1982. Box 21033 Washington DC 20009 USA

POETRY

Breasts bruised, brains battered, Skin scarred, soul shattered, Can't scream — neighbours stare. Cry for help, no one's there.

In the intervening silences, I gather up the jagged fragments. Try to re-arrange them into some semblance of The jig-saw puzzle I once called 'me'

In the vacant voids, I finally see I'll be lost forever, chasing isolated pieces of fantasy, unless I go out to find new pieces of another 'me,

I see you've got some fragments too, If we put them together, can we start a new

There are lots of pieces everywhere. But the picture we make is one we'll share.

— By Neena Nehru

Reprinted from a leaflet about the WOMEN'S CENTRE, 5 Bhavana Apartmint, 0pp. Golden Tobacco, S.V. Road, Ville Parle (West), Bombay 400 056, India.