应用程序有助印度女性快速举报性骚扰和寻求帮助

Indian Women Turning to Apps to Report Harassment¹

New software programs for wireless² devices are helping³ women in India stay safe in public spaces. Developers say these apps, short for applications, make it easier for women to report harassment and get help.

A study for the Thomson Reuters Foundation shows that safety is the biggest concern for women who use public and private transportation.

Writer Sameera Khan helped prepare the book “Why Loiter? Women and Risk on Mumbai Streets.” She told the Reuters news agency that women always have a plan of action for visiting public spaces. The plan includes what clothes to wear, what kind of transportation to take, what time to go out and whether they should travel alone or in a group.

Reported crimes up 80 percent

Indian government records show reported cases of crime against women increased by more than 80 percent between 2007 and 2016.

The deadly rape⁴ and killing⁵ of a young woman on a New Delhi bus in 2012 showed the dangers women face in India’s public spaces.

That incident led Supreet Singh of the Red Dot Foundation, a not-for-profit group, to create the SafeCity app. The app urges women in 11 Indian cities to report incidents of harassment and tell where those incidents take place.

Singh told Reuters, “We want to bridge the gap between the…reality of harassment in public spaces and what is actually being reported.”

The aim is to direct attention to the areas where crimes are being reported so that Indian officials can take action against them.

Activists⁶ say women feel most at risk on crowded buses and other public transportation, paths leading to public restrooms, underground rooms and parks.

Rights activists say social stigma⁷ tied to sexual harassment and an uncaring police reporting process results in many cases going unreported.

Apps are promising⁸

But apps like SafeCity, My Safetipin and Himmat promise to provide privacy to women reporting crimes. They also promise to share the information collected through the app with government agencies.

Supreet Singh says SafeCity has helped “in many small ways.” She notes an increase in the number of police officials in likely crime areas and improved lighting⁹ in dark places.

Police officials in many Indian cities urge women to report crimes using the software programs. In return, officials promise to investigate those reports quickly.

I’m Jonathan Evans.

Words in this Story

harassment – n. annoying or bothering someone in a constant or repeated way

gap – n. a space between two people or things; a missing part

actually – adv. ?in point of fact —used to suggest something unexpected?

loiter – v. to remain in an area when you do not have a particular reason to be there

stigma – n. an identifying mark; a sign of something

park – n. a piece of land that often includes grassland or woods and is used for public recreation purposes; a piece of ground used for recreation

1 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

2 wireless   

adj.无线的；n.无线电

参考例句：

• There are a lot of wireless links in a radio.收音机里有许多无线电线路。
• Wireless messages tell us that the ship was sinking.无线电报告知我们那艘船正在下沉。

3 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

4 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

5 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

6 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

8 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

9 lighting   

n.照明，光线的明暗，舞台灯光

参考例句：

• The gas lamp gradually lost ground to electric lighting.煤气灯逐渐为电灯所代替。
• The lighting in that restaurant is soft and romantic.那个餐馆照明柔和而且浪漫。