NEW DELHI: "Gender just, gender sensitive and not gender neutral

,” is what women’s groups, human rights groups and activists are demanding. The appeal gains significance as it comes at a time when the 2013 Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance and the report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee are set to come up for debate in Parliament.

The women’s groups and human rights bodies want "all parties aligned with women’s rights to ensure that laws made in the wake of the brutal Delhi gang-rape case do not leave women even more vulnerable than they already are”."The report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on the 2012 Criminal Law (Amendment) Bill as well as the 2013 Criminal Law (Amendment) Ordinance not only violates the letter and spirit of the Justice Verma Committee (JVC) recommendations but endangers and deepens women’s vulnerability in this country,” said representatives of women’s groups preparing to raise the issue nationwide to create awareness on the lacunae in the law.On the International Women’s Day, to be observed on Friday, activists from voluntary organizations like Jagori, Saheli, Nirantar, Women Against Sexual Violence, Lawyers Collective, State Repression Forum Against Oppression of Women, Mumbai; and Madhya Pradesh Mahila Manch, Indore propose to raise the issue in one voice. Several legal luminaries are also expected to join the chorus.Lawyer, Seema Mishra pointed out that one pernicious provision of the Ordinance 2013, upheld by the Committee report is blanket gender neutrality of the perpetrator of sexual harassment, assault and rape. "Put simply: unlike in existing law where the accused is male, the Committee recommendations if enacted into a proposed new Bill, will make it possible for women to be charged with these offences. This is wholly unacceptable,” she said.Kalpana Vishwanath from Jagori said that making a gender neutral rape law will pave the way for bigger problems and make the woman more vulnerable. Dwelling on the reality of rape, women activists say, "It is an act of violence that must be seen in the context of deeply entrenched power inequalities between men and woman in our society. Gender neutral provisions only strengthen those already powerful, silencing the real victims.”Activists argue that apart from situations where women hold positions of statutory authority (like police officers, etc), in all other situations, making the accused gender neutral means that complaints by women can be met with counter-complaints to build pressure on them to withdraw their complaint.The human rights groups say that there is no basis to the argument that gender neutral laws allow young boys to be protected from abuse, because all young boys and girls are fully protected by gender neutral laws in the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012.