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To check growing cyber harassment of women, especially on matrimonial portals, the government may soon come out with a code of conduct for such websites.
“After growing complaints by women of sexual harassment, we asked several matrimonial websites to come on board, but they were not forthcoming. DEITY (Department of Electronics and Information Technology) has finally come on board and has made a commitment. A code of conduct has been given to them, which will be made public once finalised,” Women and Child Development Minister Maneka Gandhi said here on Tuesday, while unveiling the draft National Policy for Women -2016.
“The misuse of rapid advances in information technology and telephony has resulted in new and varied forms of sexual abuse….The regulatory frameworks are not in pace with the growth of technology as yet,” said the draft policy.
The Minister said under the Nirbhaya Fund, too, a project to check crimes against women cyber space had been recommended.
Overall, the draft policy, which has invited public comments, will be focussing on health, nutrition and education of women and girls, including psychological well-being.
Expressing concern over the growing number of women landing up in asylums with wrong names and addresses as a matter of “great concern”, Gandhi said some of these women had been admitted due to property reasons or diseases, such as epilepsy.
“We are planning to make it compulsory for whoever admits such women to first take permission from the State department concerned,” she said, adding that the government was planning to rehabilitate such women.
The draft policy also proposes a review of personal laws for “equitable and just entitlements” for women. “Given the plurality of personal laws, a review is required of the personal and customary laws in accordance with constitutional provisions,” it says.
Design of a social protection mechanism for single women and surrogate mothers has also been proposed by the policy, which added that it would “review or harmonise all existing laws affecting/relating to women.”
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