Tips on how to escape from sticky situations using simple techniques were imparted to 30 girls from classes 7 to 12 during a vacation camp organised by Sahithi, a cultural organisation, recently.
With crimes against women, particularly girls on the rise, the girls were told how, at times, immobilising the attackers, instead of using force, would offer them a better chance of escape. Held in association with the All India Catholic University Federation (AICUF), the camp included 20 boys.
Sulfath Beevi and Jayamary A., instructors from the self-defence team of the Kerala Police, took a joint session for the boys and the girls, before holding one exclusively for girls.
The girls were told how to react in specific situations, such as them being pawed or groped, be it on the street or on a bus, or if their chain or bag is snatched, or if they are accosted by a knife-wielding person in an ATM. “Women should be bold and confident in their reactions, even if they are staring someone down in a bus,” says Sulfath.
They were told how using elbows, knees and fingers to hit their attackers in vulnerable areas such as ears, eyes, nose, groin, or solar plexus would stun them. “We also showed them how to respond if they are faced with a situation such as sexual assault.”
Sulfath says the instructors have been training women in self-defence in a number of schools and colleges in the city.
“In 2016-17, the women resource team of the Kerala Police trained two lakh women in self defence,” says Sulfath.
