6 Get Life for Tourist Rape in India After Death of 23-Year-Old Leaves Some Outraged (VIDEO)
Six men in India have been convicted of raping and robbing a Swiss tourist woman who was on vacation with her husband. The men were sentenced on Saturday to life in prison.
As India continues to struggle with laws that greater protect women from sexual assault, a court decided Saturday that six men would receive life in prison for the gang rape of a Swiss tourist. The decision comes less than a year after a 23-year-old New Delhi student was raped and killed by a group of men on a bus.
The Swiss woman and her husband where on a March bicycle tour near the Datia district when a group of men assaulted them. Investigators were able to recover the couple's belongings during the investigation, which included a laptop, a mobile phone, and $185 according to CNN. After the woman's husband was beat, multiple men raped her. Following the incident, the couple remained in India to pursue charges.
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The men involved in the case have denied all charges and plan to appeal the ruling. Other cases of sexual violence against women and children have also occurred in the area over the past few months, prompting protests across the country for stricter laws.
Farhan Akhtar formed his in March called MARD --- Men Against Rape and Discrimination.
"Every time I look into the mirror, I want to see a man whose mother, sister, wife and daughter are proud to call their own," says renowned Bollywood actor and director Farhan Akhtar on his organization website.
Akhtar is one of many who is trying to change crime in India by reaching out to people in the community. His particular focus is on young children. He hopes to educate children through community activity and sports, about gender equality.
In one of the most recent cases, an American woman alleged that she was gang raped in June after accepting a ride from three men in the New Delhi area.
