US offers India assistance in checking crime against women

WASHINGTON: In the wake of the horrific gang-rape of a 23-year-old girl in Delhi, the US has offered its assiatence to India in strengthening public and private organisations working to combat violence against women.

"Our goal is, whether it's in India or anywhere else, to help strengthen all of the public and private organisations that are working to combat violence against women," State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland said yesterday.

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who has not been keeping well for the last few weeks, is aware of the Delhi gang-rape case, Nuland said.

"We have as a government worked very hard around the world with regard to combating violence against women. We have a number of programmes, including programmes in India in public education, in support for NGOs, that help women who are victims of violence, including domestic violence.

"...And we will continue to make this a strong tenet of our foreign policy wherever there is a problem, and unfortunately, there are problems in countries around the world, including our own," she said.

The US, she said, has a long and strong relationship with the Government of India and with a broad cross-section of Indian NGOs on combating violence against women.

"Obviously, if the result of the investigation into this case indicates that the Indian Government wants to make changes or go in a different set of directions with regard to those programmes, we'd be interested in talking to them about it," she said.