Army as a Microcosm of Society: Understanding Sexual Violence under AFSPA

Recent discourse on development and human rights again brings gender to centre stage. By now it is an accepted fact that unless gender concerns are addressed in a nation, long-term and lasting development cannot take place. The process of socialisation and the prevailing social norms and values have a major impact on gender relationships in any society. The Army, like any other institution in society is both in structural and functional terms a microcosm of the larger society. This paper argues that these facts are significant for the army and the recent happenings in areas where the army carries out its operations.

A lot of interest and concern in recent times has been around AFSPA and the arguments for and against repealing it. The major reason for the debates is allegations of misuse of powers under AFSPA by the Army when deployed for CI/CT operations. Allegations of sexual assault in its various forms are sometimes made during such operations. These pertain to disrobing, searches that violate the bodily integrity of a woman, physical assault and rape. These, if true, are very serious crimes and have to be taken note of, acted upon and the guilty persons dealt with in the manner laid out by the law.

It is useful however to recognise and understand two underlying aspects to the alleged incidents of sexual assault in areas under AFSPA. These aspects emerge out of decades of primary research and analysis of gender relationships and sexual violence in regions across the globe. According to these pioneering studies, sexual violence is greatly influenced by a) the socialisation process and b) the play of gender power politics. The process of socialisation and the kind of norms and values that a person imbibes from childhood shapes his/her personality to a large extent. The influences in the socialisation process come from the family, the school or any other place of learning, the neighbourhood and literature and art forms emanating from the larger society. In recent times the latter includes the mass media, cinema and the new technologies of communication. It is the value system instilled through the process of socialisation that shapes gender roles, relationships and inequalities. The inequalities and the differences that come to exist between women and men in terms of access to resources such as education, employment opportunities or property invariably places men in a powerful position vis-à-vis women.

How do these dynamics get translated in the context of the Army, its personnel and its operations? Firstly, the violators or the offenders from the army are as much a part of Indian society and cultural ethos as any other person not belonging to the Army. Thus, it can be assumed without any major evidence to the contrary that the persons who join the army are socialised into these cultural norms and values like any other citizen. Secondly, the play of power and the desire to dominate is often strengthened in a context where the soldier may consider himself as superior because of being the protector. As already stated, this sense of superiority and dominance, in any case, is ingrained in unequal gender relationships. Thus, the Army as a microcosm does reflect and replicate in its behavior some of the dominant values in society.

The discussion till now focuses on the reasons for the incidence of sexual violence under AFSPA in areas of CI/CT operations. It is equally important to look at the solutions to this problem. If the reasons for the incidence of sexual violence are emergent from the larger society, the solutions cannot be divorced from it. Firstly, there needs to be a conscious attempt by society to question and challenge some of the traditional norms that place women at a great disadvantage. This initiative has to be led by policy makers and intellectuals in the society.  This is an enormous task and can only be undertaken gradually. Yet, it shall definitely impact gender relationships in a positive manner. With changes in norms and values, socialisation in general will help men and woman perceive each other as equals and not as objects for exploitation. Secondly, the specialised training for the Army at the time of recruitment and later can focus on building more equal gender roles and relationships. Planned and systematic efforts would include development of training modules and conduct of training in consultation with persons with expertise and experience on these issues.

These steps would be useful because the Army has a special and important function to play in the society. The Army’s contributions to nation building and sustaining a democratic political system are immense in present day times. By addressing this issue, they would have further excelled in performing their functions. Further, being a very orderly and disciplined organisation the Army can work towards these changes more effectively and in the process set a shining example for other institutions in our society.

It could then begin to address the roots rather than the symptoms of the malaise. This must go hand-in-hand with speedy and effective punishment for the offenders in the Army. In the entire process both the government machinery and the media have an important role to play. Confidence building measures on their part will necessitate that the hue and cry around incidents happening in areas under AFSPA does not alienate the Army. While this in no way justifies or rationalises behavior of some Army personnel that is both morally and legally wrong, yet it has to be stated that similar incidents are happening elsewhere. A sad example of this is the sexual assault of women within the very insurgent groups and organisations that the army is fighting in AFSPA areas.

In present times, sexual assault and abuse are everyday occurrences in our country. Similarly, reports point out that harassment and sexual exploitation of women happens in the corporate world and many other work contexts and in fact, every relationship characterised by power differentials. The latter includes cases of assault by policemen, in the teacher-student relationship and even in that of a father and daughter. There is underreporting of incidents in any of these contexts because of various reasons such as fear of loss of dignity, of job, of social status and even of life.

The issue of sexual exploitation of women is so serious now that we are well past the time for pointing fingers at each other. The motivations to sexually assault or rape a woman are often fundamentally ingrained in the mind of a man. For this to change, there have to be fundamental changes in society. In many historical moments of the country the Army has taken a lead and performed in an exemplary manner to achieve its goals. Recent cases of sexual abuse in areas under AFSPA again throw up a challenge to our Army. With the guidance of a few motivated leaders within the Force and the efforts of every soldier, support from policy makers and the larger society, the Indian Army will again prove that it is indeed worthy of all the respect and awe it is held in both within and outside the country.

Dr. Savithri Subramanian is a sociologist and works on gender and human rights issues in the context of development

Views expressed are personal