India

Flashing flashers

Julien — Mon, 05 May 2008 10:49:00 +0200

Tired of seeing people turn a blind eye on sexual assault and intimidation in India, one woman has decided to tackle the taboo subject head on. Her answer to a flasher is to snap a photo of him and post it online. And somebody has.

Jasmeen Patheja founded the website Blank Noise in 2003 to tackle sexual intimidation through active protest. She encourages women to post their accounts of assault online, no matter how "trivial" they may seem. She's also asking women to document men who "eve tease" them - an Indian phrase used to cover anything from unwanted glances to spitting. Her initiative has already attracted a collection of photos. One step further is to snap a man who indecently exposes himself. One woman was brave enough to take the step, and post the pic on Flickr.

Bollywood singing out for condoms

Julien — Mon, 07 Apr 2008 11:57:23 +0200

A group of Indian campaigners is singing and dancing their way to the glorification of condom use. It's a crucial fight in their central region, where two percent of the population is HIV positive. And the result - a Bollywood style video clip - is hilarious.

According to a 2007 survey by UNAIDS and India's National AIDS Control Organisation (NACO), between 2 million and 3.6 million people live with the HIV virus in India, placing the country third in the world after South Africa and Nigeria. However, AIDS prevention in the country is not an easy job. A large part of the population, particularly in rural areas, cling on to preconceived taboos about sex, and are often hesitant to use condoms.

An eye for an eye

Julien — Mon, 17 Mar 2008 15:24:06 +0100

Beaten, tormented and tortured; lynching is still the unofficial punishment for suspected criminals in some rural areas of India. Our Observers in the country explain why the backward practice is still going on. Warning: you may find the images upsetting.