India sex crime laws not tough enough

India's new sex crime laws do not go far enough to protect women or tackle gender inequality, the UN Special Rapporteur on violence against women said on Wednesday.
The legislation was passed following the fatal gang rape of a student on a Delhi bus in mid-December that sparked nationwide demonstrations over the lack of safety for women.
New measures passed by Indian lawmakers in March increased punishments for sex offenders to include the death penalty if a victim dies, and broadened the definition of sexual assault.
But Rashida Manjoo, the UN Special Rapporteur on Violence against women, said the laws were still not tough enough.
She told a news conference it was unfortunate that the opportunity to establish a substantive framework "to protect and prevent against all forms of violence against women, was lost".
Her comments echoed those of other Indian women's activists who praised the intent of the legislation but said it still had huge holes.
Campaigners are unhappy about lawmakers' refusal to criminalise marital rape or increase the punishment for acid attacks on women from a minimum seven-year jail term.