In February, shortly after midnight, a 33-year-old man raped a 63-year-old woman on the U3 subway line in Berlin, in the Steglitz-Zehlendof district, calmly left the train after the crime, and took a bus without the slightest fear. Thanks to the contribution of the public, the police later caught him.
As a result of this terrible incident, Antje Kapeková (48), spokesperson for transport policy for the Green Party, is now demanding separate carriages for female passengers. “They are more often exposed to violence and have a primary need for protection,” Kapeková explained to Bild., adding that last year women accounted for 89 percent of victims of sexual crimes and 90 percent of perpetrators were men.
“The emptier the trains are, which is especially true in the evening hours or on the outskirts of the city, the bigger the problem. It is therefore important that the problem and possible solutions be discussed publicly,” said the Green Party politician to the Berliner Morgenpost.
Camera systems and marked zones with posts for emergency calls will be available on the platforms. The concept also provides for separate carriages outside the peak hours, which will be used exclusively by women.
“Either directly behind the driver, or at the end of the train if a second driver is traveling with them, as is the case in Tokyo,” says Kapeková.
And how do they feel in the subway? “I’m not afraid on the train, but sometimes I get scared at the stations, especially on the way to the platform,” he concludes.
The transport company and politicians were not impressed by this road
“We work hard to ensure that all passengers arrive at their destination safely and with a good feeling under all circumstances,” emphasizes Maja Weihgoldová, Head of Communications at Berliner Verkehrsbetriebe (BVG), the Berlin transport company.
According to her, at each station it is now possible to use emergency posts connected directly to the BVG headquarters, where a police patrol is always on standby. Wagons also have alarms directly connected to the driver, reminds the website focus.de.
However, Ute Bondeová (CDU), senator (land minister) for transport, is critical of the promotion of special departments for women: “They are not necessary, and frankly speaking, it also contradicts my idea of an equal society regardless of gender.”
The proposal of the Greens was also criticized by the liberal FDP, the non-parliamentary opposition in Berlin. “Everyone must be able to move freely around our city. There must be no no-go zones. Instead of setting up more cars, let’s strengthen the security personnel, especially in the evening and at night,” pointed out Peter Langer from the FDP. In addition, according to him, it is necessary to focus more on prevention so that crimes do not lead to them.
Rolf Wiedenhaupt, an Alternative for Germany (AfD) politician, called the idea “absurd”. “Security is not created by separating categories of victims, but by consistently fighting criminals and speeding up sentencing with the use of punishment,” he said, according to the SpiegelOnline website.
In Tokyo, separate in both peaks
The Japanese capital is considered a model for this plan, because in the morning rush hour until 10 a.m. and in the evening between 5 p.m. and 9 p.m., cars there run exclusively for women. The only exceptions are boys under 12 and wheelchair users.
After all, it is not completely new, separate wagons appeared from 1947 to 1973, but then the carrier abandoned the project for financial reasons.
The subway in the Japanese metropolis transports over seven million passengers daily.
