London, Birmingham, Milton Keynes, Glasgow were among 16 places in the UK, that witnessed peaceful demonstrations and vigil at 7pm on 22 August. These were hosted by Indian men and women especially doctors, in solidarity with junior doctors in India, demanding justice for Abhaya, who was brutally killed at R G Kar Medical College and Hospital in Kolkata.
About 200 people gathered at the foot of the Gandhi statue in Parliament Square in central London, with loud slogans such as “we want justice”, holding lit candles, placards, India’s flag, raising concerns for women’s safety in general. Singers joined the protest, as people wrote “justice” on the ground using candles and lay down white roses.
Followed by India’s national anthem, the crowd broke out in patriotic songs in Bengali like 'Amra korbo joy', 'Ekla Cholo Re', 'Utho go Bharata lakhi', as they marched around the Parliament square holding banners and candles.
Dr Dipti Jain at the helm of Medicos Women Charity Organisation said, “We have also set up a digital protest tool to collect support capturing the whole cross section of the community, so that all voices are heard. We would submit that to Indian High Commission in the UK, Chief Minister of West Bengal, Indian Prime Minister and the President. We would continue this digital protest in the future so that our cumulative and unified voices can herald long overdue changes in the system."
In Birmingham, people gathered at the Victoria Square, where organiser Sohini Biswas spoke about how the protests in India are not just about one woman. She reportedly said, “Almost everyone we know has been assaulted, harassed or faced some form of sexism and misogyny. That's why we're here. Not just to show solidarity with the victim and her family, but also to advocate that we need better education, better policies and betters laws around how we deal with sexual violence."
In Milton Keynes a total of 60 people, mainly women and some men and children gathered outside the train station with placards demanding justice.
In Glasgow, at George Square, people gathered in silent protest - and also discussed issues like workplace safety in India.
Dr Santanu Acharya said, “We Bengalis and Indians have gathered at Glasgow today, thinking of the R G Kar incident that has happened thousands of miles away in our City of Joy.”
Sheela, participating at the protest in Glasgow added, “Women’s safety and security are under threat globally. I came to Britain in 1967. Today’s Britain is not the same as what it used to be. I can feel that the security here for women has drastically reduced as well, despite being a multicultural country."
Madhumita who just returned to the UK from India said, “As quintessential members of the society our duty is to raise our boys in a way, so that they learn to respect women from childhood - whether in the family, among friends or strangers." Organiser of the vigil in Glasgow, Sukanya, said, “We are gathered here but we are all from different professions. This incident in R G Kar has affected us all. Being a female professional and a mother of a four year old daughter, when we hear about such an heinous crime in Kolkata, where we have grown up, where there is so much delay in delivery of justice, it affects our conscience. We want a change in the society. So many vigils, protests give me hope that we will be able to change the system. I have full faith in our judiciary.."
Arnab, a male protester, who joined the vigil added, “We need a speedy trial in Kolkata. Justice delayed is justice denied."
