印度輪奸案后，主政孟買的印度濕婆軍黨開始為當地的婦女派發刀具和辣椒粉，以幫助她們反抗強奸犯。據悉，目前已有2.1萬個刀鋒長為3英寸的刀具被派發到當地婦女手中，該黨總共計劃派發10萬個。同時發到婦女手中的還有小袋包裝的辣椒粉。該黨發言人表示，派發刀具和辣椒粉只是為了向那些有犯罪傾向的人傳遞一個信號，告訴他們這里的婦女都有能力保護自己。該活動負責人說：“如果有人襲擊你，就大膽用這把刀對付他。我們已經建立了一個九人辯護小組，可以幫助你們免受任何由此導致的司法困擾。”

A political party in India is handing out kitchen knives and chilli powder to women following a gang rape in the capital New Delhi.

A political party in India is handing out kitchen knives and chilli powder to women following a gang rape in the capital New Delhi that ignited a national debate on the best way to tackle sex crimes.

The radical Hindu nationalist party Shiv Sena, an ally of the main opposition BJP and which governs Mumbai, said it had handed out 21,000 knives with three-inch blades to women in the city and surrounding areas. It plans to distribute 100,000.

Mumbai police said they were examining the knives and considering legal action.

"This is a symbolic gesture," said Shiv Sena spokesman Rahul Narvekar, adding that a knife shorter than six inches in length does not fit the definition of a weapon.

The party also handed out small bags of chilli powder - apparently to throw into an attacker's eyes.

"It's only to pass a signal to eve-teasers, anti-social elements and perpetrators of crime against women that women are empowered and they can take care of themselves," Narvekar said.

Eve-teasing is a euphemism for molesting women.

"Don't be afraid of using this knife if someone attacks you," Ajay Chaudhari, running the knife campaign, was quoted by the party newspaper, Saamana, as saying.

"We have set up a team of nine advocates to protect you from any potential court cases that may arise."

A 23-year-old physiotherapy student was raped and beaten on a moving bus in on Dec 16 before being thrown bleeding on a expressway in New Delhi, dubbed India's "rape capital". Mumbai is generally considered a safer city for women.

The attack and the student's death two weeks later caused public outrage at the failure of the government and police to protect women from rising sexual offences in a country where one rape is reported on average every 20 minutes.

In response, more women are taking up self-defense classes and carrying pepper spray. A government commission set up to recommend revisions to India's sex crime laws this week said women who kill an attacker during a attempted rape should be able to plead self-defense.

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(Agencies)

（中國日報網英語點津 Helen ）