India: Delhi Women Fear For Safety

From SIFY News:

Nearly 80 percent of Delhi women fear for their safety in the city, a new survey says.

The Delhi government's women and child development department, NGO Jagori and international organisation Unifem conducted the survey.

The survey, released on Thursday, is based on interviews of 5,010 people, including 3,816 women and 944 men. The rest are common witnesses like bus conductors, shopkeepers and auto drivers, who have a probability of witnessing acts of sexual harassment against women.

'Nearly three out of every five women reported facing sexual harassment not only after dark but also through the daytime. But, it is a good sign that 68 percent of the women deal with harassment in some way like confronting the perpetrator or seeking help from family and friends,' said Delhi Health Minister Kiran Walia, who also looks after women and child development department.

Walia said public transport, buses and roads with faulty street lights are the spaces where women and girls face a high level of sexual harassment.

China: Women & Shopping

From USA Today:

A Chinese provincial shopping center is opening a special parking lot soon exclusively for women drivers that will include extra lighting and wider spaces to keep down the number of collisions, the Global Times reports.

The newspaper, quoting Hebei Youth Daily, says the underground lot will be located at the Wanxiang Tiancheng shopping center in Shijiazhuang, a provincial capital.

The parking area, which will be free for several months, will also feature colored lights (pink and purple) and "cute cartoon pictures" for decoration, the paper promises.

To improve visibility, it will feature three lights in every parking space, the newspaper says.

"The lot offers wider parking spaces especially designed for female drivers, who tend to cause twice as many collisions in parking lots than in other places, according to insurance company data," the Global Times says.

Specially trained female parking guides will also be on hand to direct the drivers when they pull in, the Global Times says.