Women's World India

17 November 2005: We are gravely concerned about the public campaign that is being mounted against Khushboo and Suhasini. Personal opinions on the existence or non-existence of premarital sex cannot be taken as insults to communities or cultures. This kind of culture policing and mob censorship has serious implications for freedom of expression.

We are particularly concerned that such attacks are often directed at women. If women, including Tamil women, are to enjoy their fundamental right to free and equal citizenship this trend towards targeting women for speaking their minds is a retrogressive step. The whole campaign against Khushboo's remarks is an insult to the thoughts and teaching of E. V. Ramaswamy Naicker, a brilliant thinker and guru forgotten today in Tamil Nadu politics.

The right to freedom of expression must be guarded at all costs. It is a sign of the bankruptcy of our political action that a remark like this is blown out of proportion to generate hate and rouse public anger when far more important issues of injustice, corruption, livelihoods and survival are not touched upon. E. V. Ramaswamy Naicker and Subramanya Bharati should be made compulsory reading for political activists of all colours.

We are also concerned about the role of the media in sensationalising and generating controversies around such issues and thereby placing women at risk. We commend the courage and principled stand taken by Sania Mirza and Narain Karthikeyan in this regard. We call upon all leading writers, artistes, intellectuals and political parties to take a stand on freedom of expression and censorship by mob, in order to bring an end to this kind of attack. Forced apologies from Khushboo and Suhasini should be seen as a blow to a democratic culture of freedom of thought and expression.

Back to Press releases