The #metoo campaign following the stories of women assaulted by Harvey Weinstein restate the ubiquitous sexual harassment of women at Workplace. It is not the first instance of abuse of power by the people in important positions. The infamous Tarun Tejpal case back in India is yet another glaring example of the all pervasive problem of harassment of women. In many instances women are unaware of the complaint mechanism and existence of law against sexual harassment at the workplace.

Indian women have been in the work force since the 1950s, the number multiplied multifold post liberalization in the 1990s. Yet, sexual harassment didn't hit the Indian legal map until 1997. In 1992, Bhawri Devi, a village level Rajasthan government employee was gang-rapped by the village landlords after she tried to stop a child marriage in their family. The case led to the filing of the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by a women’s rights group- Vishakha, after which the Supreme court laid down guidelines, also called as Vishakha guidelines to be followed at the workplace.
Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act came into force in 2013. Sexual harassment is punishable under section 354 of the Indian Penal Code. The convict can face one to three year imprisonment and/or fine.

What constitutes sexual harassment at workplace?

Sexual harassment is making unwanted sexual advances , obscene remarks, showing sexually offensive visuals and demands for sexual favors. Inappropriate texts, unwelcome social invitations, lewd comments making sexually colored jokes, innuendoes, staring, intimidating women or any other behavior that makes a woman uncomfortable constitutes sexual harassment.

Execution of Sexual Harassment Act at workplace

The sexual harassment act requires all companies with more than 10 employees to set up an internal complaints committee, with one external member, headed by a woman. It is meant to encourage women to lodge their complain in a fear free environment and ensure a transparent system of redressal. But the reality is far from hopeful. Non-compliance of the act is rampant in companies.

According to the 2016 report on sexual harassment by Indian national Bar Association, despite the provisionsthere is no complain committee at most organization and they have no knowledge of the process.

Women find it overwhelming to challenge the employers or male colleagues for the fear of termination from their job, retaliation, lack of confidence in the organization , low awareness about laws and procedures and fear of embarrassment and stigma.
Most organizations tend to push these cases under the carpet for they view it as a blot on their public image and not as a breach of an individual woman’s right to safety and dignity. There is a sense of denial in that organizations believe that sexual harassment is something that happens in other organizations and does not exist in their own because there are no reported cases. Organizations even evade calling the term sexual harassment, such cases are often labelled as ‘inappropriate behavior’ and ‘internal matter’. Companies tend to dismiss this issue as unimportant and hope it will be forgotten in the due course. Or, the HR department will be equipped to handle it and the employees rules of conduct will be adequate to handle the situation should the need arise. Companies fail to recognize that sexual harassment is a socio-legal issue and HR department is not enough to tackle the specifics of the issue.

In response to the #Metoo campaign, Women and Child Development Ministry has launched an online portal called as the ‘SHe-box’ to report sexual harassment at workplace.

How can men contribute?

Gruesome sexual violence on the rise against women and right-wing groups validating them should be a cause of worry for all of us. Men can be powerful allies too in sexual assault prevention.

As men you need to understand that passing comments, staring, making unwanted phone calls, whistling or any other activity that is making a woman uncomfortable needs to stop now. Don't encourage or participate in such behavior.

Take down your Bollywood tinted glasses which tell you that when a girl says no she actually means yes. That’s nonsense! No means no. Understand the concept of consent.

Do not respond to sexist jokes and question people who do. It will make them think. Refrain from using gender based abusive words and language that objectifies women.

Remember that only the person perpetrating sexual violence is responsible for it. Whether a woman was wearing short dress or not, whether she was drunk or not, the time she went out and what company she was in is irrelevant. Do not blame and shame the victim.

Men need to interrogate their own privileges and the traditional notions of masculinity and femininity that put women in a hierarchical subservient position. They have to understand that gender equity is an important facet to violence prevention. Legal framework can hardly yield success until there is enough sensitization about the issue at the workplace and the cultural practices which allow men to feel superior to women are quashed.

References-

Sarpotdar, Anagha, “Sexual harassment of Women, Reflections on the Private Sector”, Economic and Political Weekly of India, Vol XLVIII No 40, October 5, 2013.
https://www.indianbarassociation.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Garima-1INBAs-Book.pdf

 The author of this article, Richa Singh is a content writer with Investronaut. She is a voracious reader and a keen traveller.

The International Day for Universal Access to Information is celebrated each year on 28th September. The term ‘Information’ has important connotations and consequences for the modern world beyond the cursory “acts provided or learned about something or someone” as mandated by the dictionary. The extent, content, and nature of this ‘learned’ information as well as the objective and the audience of this learning, are fundamental to defining the political orders and models of governance that are conceived, and adopted by any state.

This is particularly true of states like India that are conceived as democracies, where the will and choice of the voting public reign supreme. In such a scenario, it is absolutely essential that the people who vote have clarity in their choice of elected representatives, which necessarily involves an unqualified and unrestricted access to information on ‘polity’ and ‘policy’.

Access to Information as a safeguard of Democracy

Public access to information is one of the keys to a thriving democracy. For a democracy to flourish, its public institutions should be free of corruption. In most developing countries, development projects are marred by high levels of corruption. The funds meant for infrastructure, education, health, and housing are diverted to the deep pockets of politicians, middlemen, and contractors. It perpetuates the cycle of poverty and injustice, undermines the rule of law and weakens confidence citizen have in democratic institutions. Corruption thrives due to the lack of transparency and back door deals. With access to information, governments can be held accountable and questioned for their policies and expenditure on health care, education and other public services. Access to information increases public participation in governance by allowing the citizens to scrutinize the actions of the government and encourage a well-informed debate on matters of policy and national importance. A debate, as we know, is the backbone of a healthy democracy.

Right to Information and the death of RTI activists.

In 2005 India joined the illustrious list of countries passing laws for open access to information when the Right to Information Act (RTI) came into force. Under the provision of this Act, any citizen of India can request information from a public authority or office. The concerned office has to reply within 30 days. The Act gives citizens access to information to which hitherto only government officials were privy to, making every citizen a potential whistle-blower. Unfortunately, the Act that was meant to bring transparency in the system has ruffled many feathers.

Tragically, since 2005, more than 60 people have been murdered and numerous others tortured for exposing the corruption in the government on the basis of the information they received under the RTI Act. Nanjibhai Sondarva of Manekvada village in Gujarat is the latest to pay the price for seeking information under RTI. He was murdered by six people in March 2018 for seeking information about the funds spent on the construction of a road in his village. Try a google search on attacks on RTI activists in India and you will be taken aback to find a never-ending list of people who have been murdered, kidnaped, tortured, harassed, assaulted and driven to suicide.

This despite the 2014 Whistle Blowers Protection Act which promises to protect the person who exposes corruption in the government bodies, offices, and projects.

India has been ranked a dismal 81st in Corruption Perception Index 2017 by Transparency International. India has also been characterized as the worst “regional offenders” in Asia Pacific region on grounds of murders of journalists, activists, opposition leaders and intimidation and threatening of investigating agencies. As the statics indicate RTI Act alone can’t combat corruption until a sincere political will to weed out corruption prevails. In the current scenario when crackdowns on activists, journalists and civil society, in general, are on a rise, isn’t it all-important to protect a few who dare to speak up and question the establishment?

The author of this article, Richa Singh is a content writer with Investronaut. She is a voracious reader and a keen traveller.

Learning a language is hard enough, learning a foreign language harder. A language is not simply an assortment of names and sounds, but an ever expanding catalogue of a culture. Learning a new language means experiencing a culture that is not only absent but also fundamentally different from the one in which one has grown. This cultural immersion is one of the most difficult things as the biases of own cultural conditioning continuously exert a pull that resists the foreign influences. The experience can be immensely frustrating. Yet, where there is a will there is a way as the old adage testifies. If you persist long enough, the process of learning a foreign language can be immensely enriching.

The benefits of learning a foreign language far outshine the clichéd and done to death adding sheen to your CV. How does it benefit thee, let me count the ways! For one, it is an excellent brain exercise and has documented health benefits. Learning a new language is fun and is proved to boost our cognitive process, helps in better memory and delays dementia and Alzheimer’s. Learning a new language makes us a good listener as we have to pay attention to gauge the meaning in a new language. It allows us a sneak peek into a new culture. Learning new languages is not just a tool to explore the world outside, it takes us on an interesting journey inwards to understand the self. You emerge a more cosmopolitan and enriched person, an invaluable advantage in a globalized world.

The limits of your language are the limits of your world. Learning a language opens a whole new way of life to us because language acquisition cannot take place in isolation. Language and culture are deeply intertwined. Teaching-learning a foreign language is assisted by watching movies, learning songs, reading books etc. This exposure to new culture infuses cultural tolerance and brings an inevitable comparison to our native culture allowing us to self-reflect and understand our own position in the world. We might find an unexpected connect in another countries -music, food, dance etc that were hitherto alien to us.

You might claim that all this is fine but does it offer any tangible career benefits? Why should you as a student enroll for a language course? To put your brains where the money is, you can make a successful career out of it too, while having a great time.

Translator

In the age of instant google translator, the career as a translator is still a sought after one. It allows you the flexibility to work from any corner of the world as long as you have an internet connection. Since it is well paying and much in demand, it is highly competitive. One is advised to specialize in a niche domain such as education, law, medicine, science etc.

Interpreter

Interpreters are in demand in courtrooms, conferences, parliaments of multilingual countries, UN etc. Interpreters during live interviews and speeches are much in demand. Along with the message a good interpreter should also convey the personality of the person for whom you are interpreting so that the interpreters own personality stays in the background.

Flight Attendant

Foreign languages can open your path to one of the most glamorous professions and a ticket to travel the world. A combination of English and a foreign language like French, Spanish or German could be your ticket to an exciting career as a flight attendant.

Embassies and Consulates

Each country has an embassy and consulates that provides diplomatic services to other countries. These embassies and consulates need people who speak the local language.

These jobs are very prestigious and applicants with a very high proficiency are recruited after a rigorous selection process.

Proof reader/ Editor

Anything that is written/ translated needs to pass the watchful eyes of a proofreader before it is published. As a proof reader your role will be to find and correct any grammatical error in the document. A lot of international companies are setting up businesses in India. They hire people for translation and proof reading of their documents for formal communication.

Hospitality, Tourism and Travel Tour guide

With a degree in a foreign language, you can expect to work with museums and monuments as a multilingual tour guide. If you love to meet and chat with new people, this could be an option worth considering.

Trainer/ Teacher

Companies with businesses overseas train their staff in the local language before sending then abroad onsite. One can work as a corporate trainer for these companies and carry home a hefty pay check.

There are ample opportunities for qualified teachers in foreign languages. Most schools offer German, Russian, French or Russian, Japanese etc as a third language. Most universities too have foreign language departments.

Higher education in Europe

Germany, Finland and many other European countries do not charge tuition fees for higher education and countries like German and France offer generous scholarships for a Masters and Doctoral courses. A degree/diploma in foreign language opens research and higher studies opportunities abroad.

There is a world beyond engineering, medicine and management which is equally rewarding and perhaps more exciting. Don't be scared to explore it. There are no promises that it’s going to be an easy ride. The rat race and competition is a part of every profession, one can’t help it. But to be in a race one enjoys makes it worthwhile.

The author of this article, Richa Singh is a content writer with Investronaut. She is a voracious reader and a keen traveller. 

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