Earlier this year, a sexual harassment incident was reported in the National Assembly’s secretariat, when an assistant director at the international relations department claimed that she had been consistently asked for sexual favors by her director general Waseem Iqbal Chaudhry, since 2014. The victim AD, who requested that she be kept anonymous, disclosed the agony she had to face in the hands of her seniors and colleagues who had approached to sway her, if she attempted to lodge an official complaint with Kashmala Tariq, the present federal ombudsperson against harassment of women at the workplace, but their efforts were in vain, after she reported a sexual assault to the ombudsman in January.
In a patriarchal and misogynist Parliament, it’s quite staggering how in the past joint secretaries and their aides have had subdued sexual harassment cases in their respective departments with threats of dire consequences to face and instilled the victims with thoughts of the shame to their families, upon disclosure. However, the brave woman employee continued her struggle to make an informal complaint of her molestation with the then secretary to the speaker and additional secretary administration and many others who, regrettably didn’t pay heed to her, but eventually transferred her to the protocol department, which was later brought under the dominion of her harasser, who by then had an acting charge of both DJ IR and DJ protocol of Grade 20 by default. Though many other officers Grade 20 were not rewarded as Waseem, after the PTI made it to the National Assembly, she complained. Waseem’s mala fide intentions have continued to chase her repeatedly until she was posted to a research department with no official designation and a room yet to be assigned, where she has been lingering for months.
A recent online survey of more than 300 women in the workforce countrywide to gauge their experiences of workplace harassment, has revealed that more than 35 percent of victims were coerced by their employer to remain quiet and not more than 17 percent were able to complain to an internal inquiry committee, which remained a futile effort, as seen in the NA employee’s incident. Besides this, women have the least faith in the formal reporting mechanism, since it needs to be substantiated with testimonies, and remains paperwork. Nonetheless, most of the women felt they are least trusted during the investigations because the harasser is shielded by those in high places. Thus, the perpetrators continue working in the same offices without any sanctions and their work environment deteriorates with each passing day.
With the aforementioned statistics depicting the surge in percentage of voices against harassment being suppressed, and the fear associated with the backwash of sexual assault incidents, the effectiveness of laws made in the ‘Mother of all institutions’ is questioned, as it is not merely responsible for legislating, but to guarantee a woman her right of protection against sexual abuse. The Criminal Penal Code’s section 509 and the Women Protection Act 2010 are the only laws viable against sexual harassment across the country. The laws were made to align Pakistan with the international Convention on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women and the ILO’s conventions in support to end violence and harassment against women. Sexual harassment in public spaces was declared a criminal offense, which was lauded by working women. The law penalized a harasser with a maximum three years imprisonment and a fine up to Rs.500, 000. The Act further enumerates steps required to make a formal and informal harassment complaint of the hostile work environment and abuse of authority at the workplace, with steps taken to establish ombudsman offices at the federal and provincial levels. In 2016, Punjab passed a Women Protection Law enhancing the domain of violence to include mental and physical torture, harassment and cybercrimes to economic abuse. The Act protects women from the sexist attitudes that objectify her, by equipping them with equal opportunities in a male-dominated society and reassurance of a sense of security among them where they can work easily to spend a respectful life. In addition, the act further reiterates the government’s responsibility to provide shelter homes for women victims to reconciliation and resolution of disputes, as an effective method for their protection and redressal of issues.
The present laws on the sexual harassment are embodied with all aspects and can dispense instant justice. However, the poor implementation mechanism and consistent oversight have deterred victims from expecting a civil remedy. In a country home to 48.74 percent women, reporting sexual harassment is the biggest challenge because women fear repercussions, thus their reluctant attitude and the fear of bringing shame for their spouses and families; of being labeled troublemakers; of being ignored for a promotion or of losing a job-embedded deep down in their emotions, never let them report abuse. Many women refuse to believe that the treatment from their employer they have endured is actually abuse because they downplay how much they have been sexually harassed routinely. They feel turning away would help them mitigate this, but actually they fool themselves by licensing a perpetrator to continue his heinous acts.
In Pakistan, the criminal justice system is marred by institutional challenges which make it difficult to address the sexual harassment aspect of criminal law. The high cost and over-burdened system further add miseries for the female complainants who additionally have to confront discrimination in the male-dominated system, with no meaningful results at the end. A sense of hopelessness and helplessness soon develop after failed attempts to see a way out of the abusive situation in return sway them into giving up and not trying to escape or seek help.
Therefore, sexual harassment has an overall negative impact on the personalities and lives of the women, since they continue to live with their fear and anxieties, affect their psychological health. Instead of investing time and energies on finding causes of why victims don’t report, the government should divert its attention on the effective implementation of sexual harassment so there is no room left for men to continue to harass women, and also have its focus on the way to get victims an instant remedy.