Evangelicals Now
Christian news worldwide
magnifying glass Search archives
home Home check the archives Archives Subscribe Subscriptions Advertising Information & booking of classifieds Adverts Find a local evangelical Church Find a church for the search engines and extremely curious! About us Contact us Site Map
Printable
Version

India's forgotten women

A documentary

Spotlight on poverty
INDIA’S FORGOTTEN WOMEN
Director: Michael Lawson

Many people avoid portrayals of poverty in the media, and I have to admit I am one of them: I shy away from seeing others in desperate plight.

But, in July, I went to a screening in Leicester Square of India's Forgotten Women, a documentary showing poverty in India which made me realise how important the media is in putting such issues on our radars — and opened my eyes to some of the worst suffering imaginable.

Unaware

I was shamefully unaware of the degrading caste system in India which oppresses thousands of women who are at the bottom of the ladder. They are known as the ‘Dalits’ or ‘untouchables’, a section of society forced to work and live in horrific circumstances simply because of their inherited social position. The documentary pointed out the contradictions between the democratic Indian government, and the ancient caste system which abuses so many.

The documentary exposed a variety of examples of this oppression, including interviews with a woman whose husband burnt her face and neck, a woman who was gang-raped, women who are temple prostitutes and 12-year-old girls forced into bonded labour because their families failed to pay their debts. These women had little or no hope of escape, mainly because they see this as their destiny or function. After all, the ancient caste system was enshrined into Hindu texts 3,000 years ago. The hierarchy corresponds to parts of Brahma from which the castes were created.

Not equal

As I watched the documentary, I became increasingly thankful that the Lord God has no such system. The Bible tells us all people are made in the image of God. The director Michael Lawson, currently the Archdeacon of Hampstead (soon to go to St. Saviour’s, Guildford), said this is part of the reason why he made the film. He said in Hinduism the Dalits are not regarded as equal, which has lead to oppression of this kind.

While the film itself was not particularly well made, and the script was clunky in places, it kept my attention and did what it set out to do. It highlighted an often under-reported, but hugely important issue, and moved me to think about supporting the charity which made the film.

Please visit http://www.pipevillagetrust.org for more information.

Vic Hawkins