#MeToo! Show Me Respect For Women In Our World?
I somehow never liked this foolishness of celebrating women's day on one day of the year. It should have been a way of life as written in my column last year.
In the year after #MeToo exposed double-standards, let me share some random-musings about policies for sexual-harassment, to demonstrate how respect for women is violated in our world.
As a management consultant and coach who serves on the POSH-Panels in several multinational companies and international-organisations, I facilitate training on Prevention-of-Sexual-Harassment (POSH) at the workplace. After the POSH act #14 of 2013 published in the Gazette of India, it is mandatory to have a POSH training and a panel to address crimes against women in the workplace.
Every time I facilitate a program, I always wonder why we have train people to be respectful to women, this should have been ingrained in us. It is ironical that Fundamental-Duty #5 of the Indian constitution speaks about renouncing practices derogatory to the dignity of women and I always joke that every practice in this blessed goddess-worshipping nation, is derogatory towards the dignity of women. And yet it is essential to train people, especially the men to be respectful. The new law is absolutely pro-women, very stringent against men and gives the man very little opportunity for defense.
During training, men wonder why the ACT so stringent, that even if they use unsavoury language, it can go against them. And I always tell then WE THE MEN are responsible for having a law like this because we have never learned how to treat women with respect, especially in our country. Men tell me that Jerry using words like F-k and B-ch is a way of life for them and I ask then do you use this in front of your mother. You were born to a woman who you respect, so learn to respect all women as they are the mothers of others and the source of all life.
The new POSH act today also holds promoters liable if they do not take action. Phaneesh Murthy of Infosys and iGate was a serial sexual-harassment offender! And yet Infosys and iGate leadership did not take action against him, till the crimes became public. What happened to the wisdom and righteousness of so-called great- leaders like Narayan Murthy and his co-founders? Why did they not take timely action? And how did the wise-leadership at iGate recruit this rogue? Only because Phaneesh wrote huge revenues!!! Narayana Murthy, nurtured him because he had two traits: an outgoing nature and an aggressive streak that helped put the Bangalore company on the world map. "He was an alpha male-high achiever, high energy, high performance," said #MohandasPai, in an interview to HT.
In another incident at Tehelka-Media, #TarunTejpal and #ShomaChaudhary (a self-proclaimed women-rights crusader) tried to brush the incident perpetrated by Tarun, under the carpet with eloquent letters and manipulation. I remember while the world was contemplating what to do and people at Tehelka were manipulating the law, we at #KarmaveerPuraskaarAwards revoked Tarun Tejpal's award within the week (after thorough due-diligence) for violation of ethics.
#IdeasforAction: People and Management in companies and society must learn how to respect women and how to do right if that respect and trust are violated.
