Gender Bias in Law Enforcement
| Published date | 01 July 1993 |
| Date | 01 July 1993 |
| Author | Sankar Sen |
| DOI | 10.1177/0032258X9306600312 |
| Subject Matter | Article |
SANKARSEN
Director National Police Academy, India
GENDER BIAS IN LAW
ENFORCEMENT
There is discrimination by gender in culture and institutions of almost
every country. Manyof theworld's great religionsgive aninferior status
to women and place them in positions which give men rightsover them.
Discrimination has become a part of society's values spillinginto other
fields and activities. In India the ancient Indian scriptures had an
importantrole to play in lowering the imageof woman in Indian society.
AccordingtoManu, theancientHindulaw-giver, thewomanseducesman
and leads astray not only fools but even learned men. Manu's laws
epitomize complete submission of woman to man and they are still the
sanctioned codes of conduct for women. Adi Sankaracharya, the great
founderof Hindu Adavitaphilosophy calledwoman the "gatewayto hell
and poison in the shape of
nectar"
.
InVictorianEngland,underthe lawthe womancamedirectly underthe
authorityofthe fatheror husband,butin thecase ofa marriedwoman,"her
body,earnings,childrenanddomesticservicesbelongedtoher husband".
InAmerica,alsointhenineteenthcentury, lawonce recognizedhusbands
as titular heads of their households with a right to dispense corporal
punishment to disobedient wives.' Only now in industrially and tech-
nologically developed and advanced societies old attitudes of gender
discriminationarechanging andthe needforensuringequal opportunities
for both men and women is being realized.
Unfortunately, discrimination and disadvantage against women had
becomeinstitutionalized. It had spread throughoutthe legalandpolitical
systems and was perpetuated by education and the employment market.
The Reportof the WorldConference of theUN Decade for Women,July
1980reads: "While womenrepresent 50 per cent of adult populationand
a third of official labour force, they perform nearly two-thirds of all
working hours,receive only a tenth of world income and less than 1 per
cent of world property." This is more or less true about India also.
A survey done by the London Metropolitan Police shows that in the
UnitedKingdomwomenare verymuchunder-represented in politicsand
thejudiciaryand itisin thearea ofemploymentthatdiscriminationagainst
women in society can be very clearly seen. The society has stereotyped
women and discouragedthem from doing certain jobs. Thoughwomen
haveequal rightstoenter mostoccupations,theyare concentratedin low-
paid jobs. In high-paid jobs, like that of surgeons, bank managers,
electricalengineers, theirrepresentationis barely 1 percent while in low-
paid categories like telephone operators, nurses, typists, secretaries,
office-cleaners, shop assistants, their representationis more than 90 per
cent.' The Sex Discrimination Act of 1975in the U.K. prohibited direct
310
The Police Journal July 1993
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