“A just released household survey conducted by UN Women and the International Center for Research on Women from October to November 2012 reveals that at that time, only 5 per cent of women and girls ranked public spaces in Delhi as ‘safe’ from sexual violence.
The data was collected as part of the baseline survey of the Safer Cities Free of Violence against Women and Girls Initiative by UN Women in partnership with the Government of Delhi and the NGO JAGORI. The programme in New Delhi is one of the initial pilots in five cities: Cairo (Egypt), Kigali (Rwanda), New Delhi (India), Port Moresby (Papua New Guinea) and Quito (Ecuador). It is part of the larger Global Safe Cities Initiative which aims to empower women and their communities in diverse settings.
The household survey in India was conducted among a representative sample of 2001 women and girls and 1003 men and boys in the age group of 16-49 years of age in Delhi. The data was collected from all over New Delhi: Malviya Nagar, Badarpur, Molarband, Zakir Nagar, Hari Nagar, Shahpurjat and Mayur Vihar Phase-I.
Providing a stark picture of the daily realities faced by women and girls, 51 per cent of men reported that they had themselves perpetrated sexual harassment or violence against women and girls in public spaces in Delhi. In the study, 25 per cent said they had done so in the last six months.
In cases of sexual violence, many men blamed women for their behaviour. In the study, three out of four agreed with the statement ‘Women provoke men by the way they dress’ and two men out of five fully or partially agreed with that ‘Women moving around at night deserve to be sexually harassed’.
Nearly 73 per cent of women said they do not feel safe in their own surroundings as well, and reported feeling unsafe all the time.”
