Researching in torture in rural areas.
In the first few years Swanchetan mostly worked on healing of the survivors and communities facing ethnic divide and violence. As we worked in depth with the suffering of the traumatized, we realized that we have to make a choice between working with a few or also do something for the millions who are undergoing a similar suffering.
While rape is an individual sexual violence against a person, sexual violence against dalits, minorities and traumatized populations happens on a large scale with impunity built in the system with the help of the political establishment.
It can not be eradicated through better policing alone but by the civil society taking it up as an issue of establishing political power and control.
It was then that the idea of research and advocacy was born to develop documentation, evidence based researches and strategies to address these core issues in the society.
Over the years Swanchetan has conducted researches on different issues and has built up a database that is used for further research and studies. Some of them are:
Swanchetan researched into the trauma undergone by the minority community in Gujarat following the ethnic violence that broke out after the carnage in Godhra.
Swanchetan carried out a study on psyche of severely violent offenders including mass murderers and terrorists in Tihar Prisons, Delhi.
Swanchetan conducted a study on the psyche of sexually violent offenders in Tihar Prisons, Delhi.
{The database generated by these studies in Tihar prisons is used by the law enforcement for profiling and investigation.}
Advocacy for victim’s rights in villages near Varanasi.
Swanchetan carried out a study on post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) undergone by survivors of terrorist attack in Delhi.
Swanchetan carried out a research study on survivors of human trafficking in nine states of India.
Swanchetan carried out a sexual violence study in eleven states of India with specific focus on dalit violence.
Swanchetan is carrying out a study on trauma and development on victims of ethnic violence in India.
Swanchetan is conducting a study on the children gone missing in the last few years in Delhi.
Swanchetan began its advocacy for victim’s rights in 2006.
As an organization providing support to a large number of survivors we could no longer turn a blind eye to the larger issues that the survivors represented and the utter lack of sensitivity that they described at the hands of the criminal justice system in their quest for justice.
It was felt by several people in the organization that only providing counseling to the survivors will not lead to their empowerment and not to deep or long lasting changes in the criminal justice system.
An initiative was taken with a group of families who had lost their children or family members through a crime whereby they would speak in one voice and collectively stand for their rights.
Groups in progress for understanding post traumatic stress disorder.
The group has had several meetings with a vision to have victim impact statements introduced in the criminal justice system and make a charter for victims that brings their rights into focus.
With its documentation and data base and victim’s rights groups Swanchetan wishes to bring about evidence based advocacy.
Evidence based advocacy is in its infancy and the researches carried out on the psyche of the victims, the offenders and their families can lead to the creation of a movement that can slowly change the future of victimology in the country.