- Laws alone can’t change our social attitudes towards women
April is marked as Sexual Assault Awareness Month (SSAM) – a month dedicated to raising awareness on issues around sexual harassment and to encourage the survivors to speak up instead of suffering in silence. Interestingly, in this very month, the Pakistani entertainment industry came into limelight when a female artist, Meesha Shafi levelled allegations of sexual harassment against a famous male celebrity, Ali Zafar. So far, many other girls have also accused him for his indecent behaviour with them but many have also come forward in his support. Without taking sides, I think it is important to understand some of the complex underlying issues which normally discourage the victims of sexual harassment from challenging the perpetrators.
Last year, the New York Times exposed decades-long sexual harassment allegations against a Hollywood film producer, Harvey Weinstein. Actress Ross McGowan became the first one to share her personal experiences of sexual assault by Weinstein. Following that, more than 80 women came forward and broke their silence about sexual impropriety that they experienced by Mr Weinstein at different stages of their careers. The Weinstein factor did not only open a new debate about how to tackle sexual harassment issues in the film industry but in every sector across the world. The #MeToo campaign, a hashtag encouraging victims of sexual assault or harassment to share their stories has now turned into a worldwide movement which is successfully breaking down taboos surrounding sexual harassment. Women from some of the deeply patriarchal and conservative societies are coming forward to share their experiences. The #MeToo movement has indeed played a key role in raising awareness on sexual harassment issues, however, bringing culprits to justice and changing social attitudes towards these issues still have a long way to go.
The pervasiveness of sexual harassment is evident from the fact that even in the US, the so called civilised society, one in three women experienced some of sexual violence in their lifetime and in eight out of ten cases of rape, the victim knew the perpetrator (NSVRC). One of the many reasons behind under-reporting of sexual harassment is that in most of the cases, the culprits are often a relative or a friend of the victims. That’s what happened in the recent case of Meesha Shafi when a co-worker was alleged to cross the line and assaulted her. The scandal has divided public opinion on a large scale. Many are defending Meesha for the basic principle that its crucial to trust victims in cases of sexual harassment as its extremely difficult to share such experiences, especially in a country like Pakistan. Those supporting Ali include his colleagues, friends and fans who are rejecting Meesha’s claims and asking her to prove her allegations in court. Reportedly, Ali has also sent her a legal notice demanding an apology or he will sue her for defamation. Here comes the tricky bit of proving sexual harassment coming from a relative, friend or a colleague. In most of the cases of sexual assault/ harassment, especially in the absence of any concrete evidence or witnesses to testify on behalf of the victims, it becomes almost impossible to prove the crime. It is usually recommended that the victims must keep proof of harassment, details of any communication and the incidents. However, when it comes from a colleague or a friend as it happened in Meesha’s case, one is naturally not prepared how to respond. It’s easy to criticise why some victims take so long to speak up but what those critics don’t understand is the trauma they go through and the fear they feel of not being trusted.
Sexual harassment against women in public places is a criminal offence in Pakistan but as Benazir Jatoi, a human rights barrister, argues, “The title of the section is problematic and shows that lawmakers have not fully understood underlying issues around harassment and why it occurs. Section 509 is titled ‘Insulting modesty and causing sexual harassment’. The word modesty is subjective and open to interpretation at the discretion of the presiding judge.” She also mentioned some of the institutional challenges to implement sexual harassment laws including lengthy court trials, lack of trained police officers and lawyers who can keep into account the sensitive nature of such cases. All such reasons discourage the victims of sexual harassment to pursue justice and thus provide an enabling environment for culprits to perpetuate their crimes.
In light of an overall hostile social environment for working women in every industry and lack of robust mechanisms in place to tackle sexual harassment issues in Pakistan, a supportive environment is needed for those who speak up
In light of an overall hostile social environment for working women in every industry and lack of robust mechanisms in place to tackle sexual harassment issues in Pakistan, a supportive environment is needed for those who speak up. Laws alone can’t change our social attitudes towards women. We need to encourage all those who come forward and challenge the hostilities towards working women. Trust victims as it takes a lot of courage to speak about the violation of one’s dignity and respect. If we really want to have a harassment free society, we have got to rise beyond the traditional approach of victim-blaming.
