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Target temple priests who encourage divine prostitution: NHRC report
October 25, 2004
New Delhi - Pointing out that the existing state laws on abolition of Devdasi
system in Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka are woefully inadequate and
suffer from loopholes, a National Human Rights Commission report has suggested
a comprehensive central legislation to abolish the system of 'divine
prostitution' perpetuated by temple priests.
"Such a law may also bring within its ambit other customary practices leading
to sexual exploitation of scheduled castes and scheduled tribes women," says
the report on prevention of atrocities against scheduled castes, prepared by a
former bureaucrat, Mr K B Sharma for the NHRC.
But until a central law is in position, the NHRC may direct the state
governments concerned to amend their existing laws, remove loopholes, make it
more stringent and activate the enforcement machinery to implement it
effectively, Mr Sharma, associated with the uplift of dalits in Bihar, has
suggested.
He says the states should also, through the coordinated efforts of their
departments of scheduled castes welfare, woman and child development, and rural
development, launch a massive awareness programme, particularly directed at the
vulnerable communities, for abolition of 'divine prostitution' system and
availability of schemes for the rehabilitation of the liberated Devdasis.
The programme should provide information on the individuals and organisations,
the women affected by the system, potential victims and their guardians should
approach for seeking intervention of the government, he says.
"The temple priests should be targeted in this campaign for conveying the
message that they incur criminal liability in encouraging or conniving at this
practice," he says, and calls for roping in NGOs and social activists in the
awareness campaign.
The NHRC report has also suggested that the state governments concerned should
carry out intensive surveys to identify Devdasis who have not yet been
liberated from the practice as also those who have abandoned the practice but
have not been brought within the ambit of rehabilitation.
This task may be accomplished with the help of NGOs, village panchayats, women
activists and social workers, and monitored by the National Commission for
Women.
Mr Sharma has also recommended overhauling of the pattern and contents of the
rehabilitation programme for Devdasis to incorporate an integrated package that
should includes inputs of poverty alleviation, housing, health nutrition for
children, drinking water, education, PDS and social security.
The programmes should also include confidence building measures such as special
efforts aimed at saving female children from falling into the practice, and
removal of stigma from their children in schools.
The liberated Devdasis should not be subjected to loan burden in the pattern of
rehabilitation worked out for them. There should be a single window delivery of
various admissible benefits to remove bureaucratic red tape and other hassles.
The entire programme implementation, he says, should be entrusted to a single
organization with a full time functionary at the state level executing it.
The liberated Devdasis may be organized into a society at the district level.
The society should liaise with government agencies to sort out problems of
their members and also ensure that ineligible persons do not corner benefits
meant for genuine Devdasis, he suggests.
A police task force, he says, should be set up in each state concerned to
investigate complaints of trafficking in women and children. The task force
should thoroughly investigate cases where Devdasis and their daughters have
been pushed into brothels. It should build up information on agents, middlemen,
religious priests and powerful local people who are still promoting the
practice, with a view to pursuing effective legal action against them.
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'Divine'
sexual exploitation continues: NHRC
10-22-2004
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