[WSMDiscuss] Coronavirus Lockdown : Coming out of the shadow pandemic (Madhu Bhushan)

[Madhu Bhushan]

Thanks so much for sharing this Jai - although it is a very limited
perspective given as you said the "constraints".
But to be fair to Deccan Herald, it is one of the better local papers with
a spine and allows for more varied and dissenting content than other
mainstream papers do :)

warmest
Madhu

On Sun, 26 Apr 2020 at 23:51, Jai Sen <jai.sen at cacim.net> wrote:

> Sunday, April 26, 2020
>
> *Viruses in movement…, India in movement…, Patriarchy in movement…, Women
> in movement…, Freedoms in movement…*
>
> The metaphor of Lakshman Rekha that the Prime Minister [of India] used to
> ask people to stay at home in his address to the nation announcing the
> lockdown and the need for physical distancing was unfortunate. For it is
> precisely this age-old invisible patriarchal construct rooted in rigid
> caste and religious frameworks that, for too long, has defined the woman’s
> place within the family, the home, and in society.
>
> [As you read this article, please note that it was written – by an
> activist who’s working on the ground – under a situation of, let’s say,
> ‘considerable constraint’ (including a rigid word limit for a middleclass
> newspaper that wanted prescriptions, not description, let alone analysis
> and reflection) :
>
> In India :
>
>
> *Coronavirus Lockdown : Coming out of the shadow pandemic *Madhu Bhushan
>
> https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/insight/coronavirus-lockdown-coming-out-of-the-shadow-pandemic-829852.html
>
> [image: Representative image/PTI Photo]
> Representative image/PTI Photo
>
> The metaphor of Lakshman Rekha that the Prime Minister used to ask people
> to stay at home in his address to the nation announcing the lockdown and
> the need for physical distancing was unfortunate. For it is the age-old
> invisible patriarchal construct...
>
> Read more at:
> https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/insight/coronavirus-lockdown-coming-out-of-the-shadow-pandemic-829852.htmlThe
> metaphor of Lakshman Rekha that the Prime Minister used to ask people to
> stay at home in his address to the nation announcing the lockdown and the
> need for physical distancing was unfortunate. For it is the age-old
> invisible patriarchal construct...
>
> Read more at:
> https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/insight/coronavirus-lockdown-coming-out-of-the-shadow-pandemic-829852.html
> The metaphor of Lakshman Rekha that the Prime Minister used to ask people
> to stay at home in his address to the nation announcing the lockdown and
> the need for physical distancing was unfortunate. For it is the age-old
> invisible patriarchal construct...
>
> Read more at:
> https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/insight/coronavirus-lockdown-coming-out-of-the-shadow-pandemic-829852.html
>
> The metaphor of Lakshman Rekha that the Prime Minister [of India] used to
> ask people to stay at home in his address to the nation announcing the
> lockdown and the need for physical distancing was unfortunate. For it is
> precisely this age-old invisible patriarchal construct rooted in rigid
> caste and religious frameworks that, for too long, has defined the woman’s
> place within the family, the home, and in society.
>
> Confined within this permanent state of internalised lockdown that is as
> much economic, emotional, and psychological as much as it is physical, it
> is only now over the past couple of decades that women and trans
> communities across classes and cultures have begun “transgressing” the
> Lakshman Rekha by walking out of violent homes and taking control over
> their own lives. And social and legal support systems have also partially
> evolved to respond to and in fact, legitimise these 'transgressions'.
>
> Despite this, however, the home continues to be the most unsafe space for
> women with one in three women in India continue to experience domestic
> violence at some point of time in their life (National Family and Health
> Survey 2015-2016).  This indicates that this is perhaps one of the most
> normalised if shadow pandemic of our times. Experiences of crises globally
> including the COVID-19 epidemic show that all forms of violence against
> women and children, including sexual violence, increase at such times.
>
> In this context “Stay home. Stay safe” sounds ironical in the context of
> many women since the lockdown has meant that they along with their children
> are forced to live in close proximity with the perpetrators of violence who
> are husbands and other family members, increasing the impact of this
> violence that could be both internal i.e. emotional and psychological, and
> external i.e. physical. The respite of going to work or school or being
> able to access secure and safe spaces like parental homes, homes of friends
> etc is no longer available with movement being banned.
>
> A state of internalised lockdown has once again been legitimised at a
> great cost to their own mental and physical health.
>
> Helplines are getting calls but the numbers are much less compared to
> “normal” times. And the few who do, are unable to get the support they
> actually need. This indicates an ominous silencing that could be regressive
> and implosive in the long run.
>
> The story of what happened to a woman in Anekal two weeks ago is a classic
> example. She had been living with an extremely conservative man with a
> history of violence. In the lockdown unable to bear that she woke up at 7
> am instead of earlier to attend to her assigned wifely duties he began
> beating her. Unable to bear the torture, she left the house and wandered,
> lost. Until she connected with a woman’s rights activist, who had earlier
> dealt with her case. The activist helped her lodge a non-cognisable case
> (NCR) since she did not want to lodge a formal complaint.
> Fearful of going back home, she wanted to go to her mother’s house in
> Magadi but could not with a curtailment on movement. The police, more
> concerned with their coronavirus duties, could not provide her with a
> vehicle.  Finally, with the support of the activist, she reached her
> mother's house. But for this support, she might have been trapped in a
> situation that would have put her at greater risk.
>
> Given the challenges involved in addressing the complex issue of domestic
> violence within a lockdown situation, the main issues to be addressed
> within a humane and human rights framework would include that of mobility,
> accessibility to protection  including police and shelters, credible
> information and decentralised outreach services. Some of the steps to be
> taken could include :
>
>    - Well-publicized helplines set up in coordination with the police and
>    NGOs offering a range of services from counselling to shelter and medical
>    support if necessary.
>    - Transportation to get out of the house to seek security and safety
>    either in shelters or homes of family and friends.
>    - In cases where women and children cannot or do not want to leave
>    their homes, provisions for the institutional quarantining of perpetrators
>    of domestic violence with a known history of abuse.
>    - Easy accessibility to police assistance in order to be able to lodge
>    Non Cognisable Reports (NCR) or FIRS as the need might be.
>    - Access to courts and lawyers if necessary, for urgent interim orders
>    of protection and residence under the Prevention of Domestic Violence Act
>    (PWDVA)
>    - Availability of Protection Officers appointed under the PWDVA and
>    restoration of One Stop Crisis Centres (OSCC) as part of essential
>    services. If no Protection Officers are appointed, temporary officers are
>    appointed for the duration of the lockdown and passes be issued for their
>    movement.
>    - A widespread media outreach that proscribes domestic violence,
>    empowers the victims with survival strategies, pushes attitudinal change in
>    perpetrators and disseminates information about help available along with
>    phone numbers, email addresses and contact person.
>    - Local neighbourhood campaigns on the lines of the successful “Bell
>    Bajao” campaign that raise awareness about domestic violence in creative
>    ways at every ward level conducted by panchayat and self-help group members
>    and Anganwadi workers.
>
>
>
> At another level, as global economic systems and mega institutions
> crumble, people are being forced to retreat into smaller spaces to survive,
> rebuild livelihoods and forge new human solidarities. The global lockdown
> is perhaps also a moment for us to confront and exorcise the internal virus
> of patriarchy which combined with that of caste, class and communal
> divisions is in fact, corroding our collective immunity systems.
>
> If we have to emerge from this pandemic as a more "healthy" society in a
> holistic sense, we need to consciously cultivate local more sustainable
> interdependent networks of care and responsibility with a larger, more
> rational, and humane perspective that respects and transcends differences
> and diversity. Be it that of gender, caste, ethnicity, language, or
> religion. The challenge lies in preparing for this transformation.
>
>
> *Madhu Bhushan is an activist and researcher*
> *With inputs from Geeta Menon (Stree Jagruthi Samithi) and Mamatha Yejaman
> (Gamana Mahila Samuha)*
>
> Representative image/PTI Photo
>
> Read more at:
> https://www.deccanherald.com/specials/insight/coronavirus-lockdown-coming-out-of-the-shadow-pandemic-829852.html
>
>
>
> ____________________________
>
> Jai Sen
>
> Independent researcher, editor; Senior Fellow at the School of
> International Development and Globalisation Studies at the University of
> Ottawa
>
> jai.sen at cacim.net
>
> Now based in New Delhi, India (+91-98189 11325) and in Ottawa, Canada, on
> unceded and unsurrendered Anishinaabe territory (+1-613-282 2900)
>
> CURRENT / RECENT publications :
>
> Jai Sen, ed, 2018a – *The Movements of Movements, Part 2 : Rethinking Our
> Dance*. Ebook and hard copy available at PM Press
> <http://www.pmpress.org/>
>
> Jai Sen, ed, 2018b – *The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us
> Move ?* (Indian edition). New Delhi : AuthorsUpfront, in collaboration
> with OpenWord and PM Press.  Hard copy available at MOM1AmazonIN
> <https://www.amazon.in/dp/9387280101/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1522884070&sr=8-2&keywords=movements+of+movements+jai+sen>
> , MOM1Flipkart
> <https://www.flipkart.com/the-movements-of-movements/p/itmf3zg7h79ecpgj?pid=9789387280106&lid=LSTBOK9789387280106NBA1CH&marketplace=FLIPKART&srno=s_1_1&otracker=search&fm=SEARCH&iid=ff35b702-e6a8-4423-b014-16c84f6f0092.9789387280106.SEARCH&ppt=Search%20Page>,
> and MOM1AUpFront <http://www.authorsupfront.com/movements.htm>
>
> Jai Sen, ed, 2017 – *The Movements of Movements, Part 1 : What Makes Us
> Move ?*.  New Delhi : OpenWord and Oakland, CA : PM Press.  Ebook and
> hard copy available at PM Press <http://www.pmpress.org/>
>
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