KOLKATA (UCAN): India’s Catholic bishops expressed their support of a national strike by medical personnel August 19. The strike was organised to demand workplace safety following the gang rape and murder of a 31-year-old female second year resident doctor on August 9.
The Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India emphasised the need for the government to take immediate and effective measures to ensure the safety of women in all workplaces, especially in institutions dedicated to healing and caregiving.
Archbishop Andrews Thazhath of Trichur, the conference president, condemned the “horrific crime” and called it an assault on the dignity of all women, demanding swift justice for the victim.
The victim’s half-naked body was found with multiple injuries in a seminar hall at the R. G. Kar Medical College in Kolkata, leading to voluntary protests in several cities and towns.
This eventually escalated into a national strike when the Indian Medical Association, the country’s largest medical union, called for nationwide action on August 17.
The association called for a meticulous and professional investigation into the killing in the state of West Bengal, where the government is led by Mamata Banerjee of the Trinamool Congress party—a woman.
A hospital volunteer was arrested in connection with the crime, leading to the transfer of the investigation from local police to the Central Bureau of Investigation due to allegations of slow progress.
Doctors, medical students, and nurses across India joined protest marches, with thousands participating in cities like Delhi, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and Pune.
Christian doctors in the northeastern states of Meghalaya and Mizoram also joined the strike, while thousands marched in the streets of Kolkata chanting, “We want justice.”
Dr. George Thira, an office-bearer of the Nagaland In-Service Doctors’ Association, highlighted that the protest in Nagaland aimed to send a message that violence against healthcare workers will not be tolerated.
The text mentioned that in 2022, India reported 31,516 rape cases, reflecting a 20 per cent rise compared to 2021.
After the gang rape of a paramedical student in Delhi in 2012, the country implemented sweeping changes to its criminal justice system, with four men being hanged for the crime in 2020.
