Following the tragic rape and murder of a trainee doctor at a hospital and medical college in West Bengal in August, a wave of protests swept across the state as thousands of women took to the streets to demand their right to “Reclaim the Night.”
Meghamala Ghosh, a 23-year-old, joined the protest alongside her mother, but despite the solidarity, she couldn’t shake the sense of danger that plagued her as a woman living in a country grappling with rampant sexual violence. “As soon as it was 12, I felt ‘It’s getting too late, it’s getting too late, it’s getting too late,’” Ghosh reflected. “This is a constant thought that runs through my mind.”
On their way home, as they traveled in an e-rickshaw, a group of men forced the vehicle to stop, surrounding it with taunts and lewd remarks. Feeling uncertain about the driver’s intentions, Ghosh instinctively reached for the kitchen knife she had brought along for protection. Fortunately, the driver managed to drive away quickly, delivering them safely home.
Rather than feeling empowered by the sight of thousands of women taking a stand, Ghosh was left grappling with a sobering thought: “How can we reclaim the night when the night was never ours to begin with?”
Other women involved in the protest shared similar experiences of harassment and intimidation, with men entering the demonstration to disrupt the gathering and order the women to go home.
This protest is part of a growing movement of women asserting leadership and participation in protests across South Asia, according to activists and organizers. However, the growing visibility of female dissent has also sparked a backlash, with authorities and individuals seeking to suppress it through various means of repression.
Repression Tactics While women have historically participated in protests in India, Bangladesh, and Pakistan, their roles are becoming increasingly prominent, both in leadership and in organizing the movements. Heather Barr, associate director of the Women’s Rights Division at Human Rights Watch, pointed out the shift: “Women have always been involved, but now they are taking on more leadership roles and becoming the primary actors.”
In Afghanistan, for example, since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021, women have been at the forefront of social resistance. The suppression of their rights, including restrictions on their public voices, has galvanized many women into activism.
Sexual violence and harassment are pervasive throughout South Asia, with a rape being reported every 17 minutes in India, according to government data. While there were some legal reforms following the 2012 gang rape and murder of a woman on a bus, women in India continue to face daily harassment. As Ghosh explains, the threat of violence is a constant companion for women.
In Bangladesh, the situation is similarly grim. Nazifa Jannat, a student and activist, described the omnipresent feeling of being watched, whether in a crowded market or on a desolate street.
Deanne Uyangoda, Protection Coordinator for Asia Pacific at Front Line Defenders, highlighted how women’s roles in protests have expanded in recent years, particularly in organizing, building trust, and framing the protests’ messages.
Courageous Women Protest Leaders In Pakistan, one of the notable leaders of recent protests is Sammi Deen Baloch, a woman who has been fighting for justice since her father, a doctor, was forcibly disappeared in 2009. Today, she is one of the leading voices in the movement against enforced disappearances in Balochistan. The province, rich in natural resources, is also a hotbed of tension, with its people facing marginalization and state persecution.
In 2016, Baloch herself was forcibly disappeared by Pakistan’s intelligence agency and held incommunicado for seven days. During her captivity, she recalls being told that as a young woman, she was particularly vulnerable to violence, with sexual violence implied as a threat.
Such threats of sexual violence are frequently used to intimidate women activists, as Barr notes, with women facing a higher risk of sexual violence than their male counterparts in these protest movements.
Surveillance and Intimidation The harassment of women activists extends beyond physical violence to tactics of surveillance and privacy invasion. In Balochistan, for example, women protestors were subjected to extensive surveillance as they camped out in Islamabad for nearly a month, protesting against the killing of a civilian who had been forcibly disappeared. Baloch recounts how the government used cameras and a heavy male police presence to intimidate them.
These actions were not only about controlling the protest but also about weaponizing women’s modesty. Baloch, who wears a niqab as a sign of respect, found herself forced to remove it in front of cameras to counter fabricated social media posts about her.
Similarly, Khadijah Shah, a prominent activist against the arrest of former Prime Minister Imran Khan in Pakistan, faced a swift and aggressive backlash after joining protests. She was subjected to public threats, including calls for rape and violent abuse. After spending months in jail, Shah was forced to turn herself in after her family was threatened, a tactic often used against women, who are perceived as vulnerable through their familial ties.
The Gendered Nature of Repression Barr underscores that threats against women’s families are a common tool of intimidation in patriarchal societies. “It’s much easier to threaten the family of a woman because, in patriarchal societies, a male family member might feel that he can exercise control over a female member of his family,” she said. The threats, often laced with gendered violence, can be real and terrifying.
Despite the risks, women in South Asia continue to stand up for their rights, even as they face significant dangers. The repression they encounter is a stark reminder of the broader struggles women face in securing their voices and their space in public life.
