Supreme Court Handbook on Gender Stereotypes and Why It Matters; What Alternatives It Suggests; CJI Chandrachud Says Reliance on Stereotypes Is Often Unconscious and Can Prevent Us from Understanding Reality

By Apurva Vishwanath New Delhi: August 17, 2023 A “career woman” is only a “woman”; “eve teasing” is “street sexual harassment” and “forcible rape” is simply “rape.” These corrections in sexual stereotypes are part of a handbook for judges and other legal practitioners released Wednesday by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. “Where the language of judicial discourse reflects antiquated or incorrect ideas about women, it inhibits the transformative project of the law and the Constitution of India, which seek to secure equal rights to all persons, irrespective of gender,” the handbook states. CJI Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud. (PTI) (HT_PRINT) ----- What Is the Handbook? The SC handbook is a 30-page booklet that aims to assist judges and the legal community in identifying, understanding and combating stereotypes about women. The handbook identifies common stereotypical words and phrases used about women, many of them routinely found in judgements. For example, in the 2017 Supreme Court ruling awarding the death penalty for the convicts in the Delhi gang-rape case, the verdict repeatedly uses the word “ravished” to say raped. “It is absolutely obvious that the accused persons had found an object for enjoyment in her and, as is evident, they were obsessed with the singular purpose sans any feeling to ravish her as they liked, treat her as they felt and, if we allow ourselves to say, the gross sadistic and beastly instinctual pleasures came to the forefront when they, after ravishing her, thought it to be just a matter of routine to throw her along with her friend out of the bus and crush them,” the Court said. The handbook quotes other judgements where judges unwittingly use stereotypical characterisations of women. “A girl aged 24 years is weak and vulnerable, capable of being exploited in many ways,” a 2017 judgement of the Kerala High Court said. Why is it important for judges to use the right words? The handbook argues that the language a judge uses reflects not only their interpretation of the law, but their perception of society as well. “Even when the use of stereotypes does not alter the outcome of a case, stereotypical language may reinforce ideas contrary to our constitutional ethos. Language is critical to the life of the law. Words are the vehicle through which the values of the law are communicated. Words transmit the ultimate intention of the lawmaker or the judge to the nation,” it states. Have there been similar efforts in other countries? There have been projects in other countries, pushed by both academia and practitioners, which hold up a mirror for the court’s practices. For example, the Women’s Court of Canada, a collective of female lawyers, academics and activists write “shadow judgements” on equality law. In India, the Indian Feminist Judgement Project also ‘rewrites’ judgements with a feminist critique. It is led by advocate Jhuma Sen, Dr Aparna Chandra at the National Law School of India University, Bangalore, and Dr Rachna Chaudhary at the Ambedkar University, Delhi. Source: ‘Slut, Seductress’ Are Simply ‘Women’, ‘Eve Teasing’ Is ‘Street Sexual Harassment’: What SC Handbook on Gender Stereotypes Says ------ Eve-Teasing To Keep, Adulteress To Bastard: SC Suggests Rewrite To Fight Stereotypes By Ananthakrishnan G New Delhi: August 17, 2023 “Eve teasing” is the incorrect way of saying “street sexual harassment” which should be the “alternative language… preferred” in courts, and it is a “stereotype” that “women who consume alcohol or smoke cigarettes want to engage in sexual relations with men”. These are among the dozens of “stereotypes” and “incorrect… stereotype promoting language” flagged by the Supreme Court in its ‘Handbook on Combating Gender Stereotypes’ launched Wednesday. The handbook, according to the top court, “aims to assist judges and the legal community in identifying, understanding and combating stereotypes about women”. It contains a “glossary of gender-unjust terms and suggests alternative words or phrases which may be used while drafting pleadings as well as orders and judgments”. Some of the other terms that it wants courts to avoid using are adulteress, bastard, career woman, carnal intercourse, concubine/keep, housewife, mistress, prostitute, transsexual and unwed mother. On whether to use survivor or victim for someone who has been raped, it says “an individual who has been affected by sexual violence may identify themselves as either a “survivor” or “victim”. Both terms are applicable unless the individual has expressed a preference, in which case “the individual’s preference should be respected”. The handbook calls upon the “Indian judiciary” to “recognise the deep-rooted impact of gender stereotypes and actively work to dismantle them from its thinking, decision-making, and writing”. In his foreword to the book, Chief Justice of India D Y Chandrachud writes that “relying on predetermined stereotypes in judicial decision-making contravenes the duty of judges to decide each case on its merits, independently and impartially” and that “in particular, reliance on stereotypes about women is liable to distort the law’s application to women in harmful ways”. SC handbook gender Some of the terms the SC handbook flags, and the alternatives it suggests. (Screenshot) The CJI points out that “even when the use of stereotypes does not alter the outcome of a case, stereotypical language may reinforce ideas contrary to our constitutional ethos”. Stating that “challenging and overcoming stereotypes is essential to ensuring an equal, inclusive, and compassionate society”, the CJI underlines it is “vital that judges not only avoid relying on stereotypes in their decision-making and writing, but also actively challenge and dispel harmful stereotypes”. He says “if harmful stereotypes are relied on by judges, it can lead to a distortion of the objective and impartial application of the law” and “perpetuate discrimination and exclusion”. The handbook points out that “reliance on stereotypes is often subconscious” and “can prevent us from understanding the reality of a situation and can cloud our judgment”. It says that “on a micro-level, stereotypes lead to exclusion and discrimination in workplaces, educational institutions, and public places” and “may also have an adverse impact on the mental health or professional performance of the members of the stereotyped group because they are aware that they are being viewed in a particular manner”. Stating that “the harm caused can be enormous” if a judge “relies on preconceived assumptions about people or groups when deciding cases or writing judgements”, it says this can lead the “judges to ignore or bypass the requirements of law or distort the application of the law vis-à-vis specific persons or groups”. “Using stereotypes, instead of objectively evaluating the situation, goes against the constitutional principle of ‘equal protection of laws’, which posits that the law should apply uniformly and impartially to every individual, irrespective of their membership to a group or category. The use of stereotypes by judges also has the effect of entrenching and perpetuating stereotypes, creating a vicious cycle of injustice.” The handbook lists the most common kinds of gender stereotypes that concern women as stereotypes “based on the so-called ‘inherent characteristics’ of women… based on the gender roles of women; and… related to sex, sexuality, and sexual violence”. While it’s a stereotype based on the so-called “inherent characteristics” that “all women want to have children”, the “reality” is “all women do not want to have children” and “deciding to become a parent is an individual choice that every person takes based on a variety of circumstances”, the handbook points out. That “wives should take care of their husband’s parents” is a stereotype based on gender roles, it says, adding that “the responsibility of taking care of elderly individuals in the family falls equally on individuals of all genders” and “not the sole remit of women”. Illustrating stereotypes concerning sex and sexual violence, the handbook says the belief is “women who are sexually assaulted or raped by men cry incessantly and are depressed or suicidal. If a woman’s behaviour does not conform to this mould, she is lying about having been raped”. The “reality is different people react differently to traumatic events…There is no ‘correct’ or ‘appropriate’ way in which a survivor or victim behaves”. Source: https://indianexpress.com/article/india/eve-teasing-to-keep-adulteress-to-bastard-sc-suggests-rewrite-to-fight-stereotypes-8895901/ ------- Supreme Court Launches Handbook to Avoid Gender-Based Stereotypes During Judicial Proceedings Released on Wednesday, the handbook is called Combating Gender Stereotypes R. Balaji New Delhi 17.08.23 A glossary of alternative words and phrases has been released by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud for preferred use by judges and lawyers to avoid gender stereotypes during judicial proceedings. Released on Wednesday, the handbook is called Combating Gender Stereotypes. The following words or phrases in bold are sought to be replaced by the alternatives listed after the colon. Adulteress: Woman who has engaged in sexual relations outside of marriage Affair: Relationship outside of marriage Bastard: Non-marital child or, a child whose parents were not married Biological sex/biological male/ biological female: Sex assigned at birth Born a girl/boy: Assigned female/ male at birth Career woman: Woman Carnal intercourse: Sexual intercourse Chaste woman: Woman Child prostitute: Child who has been trafficked Concubine/keep: Woman with whom a man has had romantic or sexual relations outside of marriage Dutiful wife / Faithful wife / Good wife / Obedient wife: Wife Woman of easy virtue: Woman Effeminate (when used pejoratively): Accurately describe the characteristic using a gender-neutral term (such as “confident” or “responsible”) Eve teasing: Street sexual harassment Faggot: Accurately describe the individual’s sexual orientation (such as “homosexual” or “bisexual”) Fallen woman: Woman Feminine hygiene products: Menstrual products Forcible rape: Rape Harlot: Woman Hermaphrodite: Intersex Hooker: Sex worker Hormonal (to describe a woman’s emotional state): Use a gender-neutral term to describe the emotion (such as “compassionate” or “enthusiastic”) Housewife: Homemaker Indian woman/western woman: Woman Ladylike: Use a gender-neutral description of behaviour or characteristics (such as “amusing” or “assertive”) Layabout /Shirker: Unemployed Marriageable age: A woman who has attained the legal age required to marry Mistress: Woman with whom a man has had romantic or sexual relations outside of marriage Prostitute: Sex worker Provider/ Breadwinner: Employed or earning Provocative clothing/ dress: Clothing/ dress Ravished (such as “she was ‘ravished’ by him”): Sexually harassed/ assaulted or raped. Seductress: Woman Sex change: Sex reassignment or gender transition Slut: Woman Spinster: Unmarried woman Survivor or Victim: An individual who has been affected by sexual violence may identify themselves as either a “survivor” or “victim”. Both terms are applicable unless the individual has expressed a preference, in which case the individual’s preference should be respected. Transsexual: Transgender Transvestite: Cross-dresser Whore: Woman Woman of loose morals/ easy virtue/ promiscuous woman: Woman. In his foreword to the handbook, CJI Chandrachud said that reliance on stereotypes about women was liable to distort the law’s application to women in harmful ways. The CJI thanked the social justice sub-committee of the e-committee (Justice Moushumi Bhattacharya of Calcutta High Court, Justice Prathiba Singh of Delhi High Court and Professor Jhuma Sen, in particular) for their initial draft. Source: https://www.telegraphindia.com/india/supreme-court-launches-handbook-to-avoid-gender-based-stereotypes-during-judicial-proceedings/cid/1959434 ----- URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/supreme-court-gender-cji-chandrachud-/d/130460 New Age Islam, Islam Online, Islamic Website, African Muslim News, Arab World News, South Asia News, Indian Muslim News, World Muslim News, Women in Islam, Islamic Feminism, Arab Women, Women In Arab, Islamophobia in America, Muslim Women in West, Islam Women and Feminism