Protest held demanding a safe city for women

 Proving that feminism is not only for women, Sangam Iyer, a media person, led a peaceful protest in Freedom Park against molestation of women on the night of December 31.

Around a hundred men and women from different backgrounds, dressed in black, gathered in the evening to demand a safer city for women.

“After I read about the incidents on New Year’s eve, I could not sleep in peace. I wanted to do something about it,” Iyer said. To take discussions beyond likes and shares on Facebook, he created an event titled ‘Peaceful Protest against Mass Molestation’. The group raised slogans such as ‘It’s a dress, not a yes’ and ‘See it, hear it, report it’. Many women described personal experiences of being harassed.

Online petition

Iyer has also started a petition on Change.org addressed to the commissioner of police. The petition makes several recommendations to the police to ensure safety of women and has received more than 1,300 signatures. Increasing patrolling at night in areas with heavy footfall consulting women to identify unsafe areas are some of the measures suggested.

The petition also recommends that the police run a campaign to educate people on how to make a report and the course of action available to them. Iyer will submit the recommendations to the commissioner in person next week.