What is Sexual Violence?

Mithra Trust

Your body is your own – and only you have a right to decide what you do with it.

Sexual violence is a form of gender-based violence. That is, it’s a form of violence that a person faces because of their gender. For instance, a woman who is out in public can face sexual violence in the form of molestation or verbal sexual harassment because she is a woman, and because women are considered easy targets. A man who is seen as being not masculine enough can face violence in the workplace because he is a man and is not conforming to how society dictates men should look or act. A child can face violence at home because they’re a child and do not have the power to speak up against adults and are scared of the consequences of speaking up.

But sexual violence is not the only form of gender-based violence (GBV). GBV also includes physical violence, verbal harassment, financial harassment, and emotional manipulation. And GBV – any form of it – can happen in many places, including our homes, our workplaces, out in the streets, or in custody.

Remember that these different forms of GBV are not independent of each other. A person can face multiple forms of violence in any one setting, or the same form of violence in different settings. That is, a person can face sexual violence at home or in the streets; and they can face both sexual and financial violence at the workplace.

Sexual violence can be broadly grouped into three kinds:

Sexual harassment

An instance where a person has faced sexual violence without direct assault, i.e., there is no rape, no physical penetration of the person in any manner. So what we euphemistically call ‘eve-teasing’, the correct term for which is street sexual harassment, would fall under this category.

Sexual assault

This is any instance where a person faces penetrative sexual violence, or severe physical sexual harassment. In a large number of cases, sexual assault refers to rape – but there's a problem with the term. Historically, ‘rape’ is understood to mean non-consensual peno-vaginal penetration where the perpetrator is a man and the victim is a woman. However, this understanding is incomplete as does not take into account that any other kind of penetrative sexual assault (for example, non-consensual anal penetration using fingers) is equally traumatic. Plus, a person of any gender can be a victim or a perpetrator.

Sexual violence can be broadly grouped into three kinds:

Sexual abuse

While sexual harassment and sexual assault refer to single, specific instances of sexual violence, sexual abuse is what we call sexual violence that persists over a period of time. For instance, a woman may face marital rape over a period of weeks, months, or even years. (Note: While marital rape is legally not considered a crime in India, it is considered a form of violence under the Domestic Violence Act, which is a civil law. This means that while a man cannot be sent to jail got raping his wife, the victim woman can get civil relief, including protection orders, the right to stay in the shared household etc.)

Non-consensual touching: Inappropriate touching of someone's body parts without their agreement or against their will.
Forced sexual acts: Coercing or pressuring someone into engaging in sexual activities they do not want to participate in, such as intercourse, oral sex, or other sexual acts.
Exposing someone to explicit content: Sharing or showing sexually explicit material (such as pornography) to someone without their consent or when they are unable to provide consent, like a minor.
Revenge porn: Shooting and/or sharing intimate visuals without consent, or threatening to share such visuals as a revenge for rejection.
Unwanted advances: Propositioning sex or a relationship to someone despite a rejection, or despite non-verbal cues that they are not interested.
Proposing a quid-pro-quo: Demanding sexual favours in exchange for benefits like promotions or better projects.
Creating a hostile work environment: Intimidating, influencing other colleagues to intimidate or make the workplace uncomfortable for a person who has refused sexual favours.
Sexual exploitation: Manipulating or using someone for sexual purposes against their will, often involving vulnerable individuals.
Child sexual abuse: Any sexual activity involving a child who cannot provide legal consent due to their age.

Not just "stranger danger"

It’s important to note here that most forms of sexual violence come from people known to the victim. As per the National Crime Records Bureau, in 96.5% of the rape cases of women filed in India in 2021, the perpetrator is known to the victim.

Yet we tend to look at sexual assault as a crime that a stranger commits. Our news reports are full of stories of stranger-committed sexual violence, and stories of friends and cousins, fathers and brothers, grandfathers and uncles committing sexual violence are few and far between.

Why should you know this?

It is important to not ignore or make light of sexual violence that happens inside our own homes and communities.

The next time you're angry about sexual violence and demand better laws and policies, you should keep in mind that these policies should help people of all genders who are victimised by their near and dear ones.

But most importantly, when a person is violated by people closest to them, it becomes difficult to even recognise what has happened as sexual violence.

If you or someone close to you is ever in such a situation, remember that sexual violence is never the victim's fault. Remember that you're not alone – there are resources available for you, whether you want to seek justice, heal yourself, or find closure.