Majority of women experience sexual harassment

AWLA Launches report on Sexual Harassment
Accra, Sept 30, GNA - The Africa Women Lawyers Association (AWLA) on Monday launched a report on the findings of a national survey on the incidence of sexual harassment in the formal workplace and the academia in Ghana.

The report, which was launched by the Deputy Commissioner of CHRAJ, Ms. Anna Bossman, said "the issue of sexual harassment is a pervasive yet ignored problem in Ghana but unfortunately, the lack of inadequate documentation, on the problem has impeded efforts to design specific intervention strategies. And that the absence of adequate statistics has also made the elaboration of programmes and monitoring of sexual harassment charges difficult".

Ms. Bossman, who was also the Project Coordinator of the research, said the survey aimed at collecting qualitative and quantitative data on the actual incidence of sexual harassment in the workplace and the academia to formulate a checklist of best practices to curb the incidence.

She said the Association of Women Lawyers, of which she is also a member decided to embark on the project because it deemed it appropriate and is conscious of the fact that sexual harassment instils fear and insecurity in women, which violates and impairs or nullifies their human rights and freedom.

She said the survey shows that majority of women in the formal workplace and academia experience sexual harassment and that these women are mostly young and poor live the nation's two most populous areas and that men are the majority of sexual harassers.

Ms. Bossman said the most commonly experienced form of sexual harassment usually involves comments on physical appearance with sexual innuendos.

While majority of the respondents said severe consequences could occur for resisting sexual harassment, others said there is no effect from sexual harassment on their productivity.

She said although most respondents mostly women said their responses to sexual harassment is to ignore it, many wanted it to be punished. Ms. Bossman said the fact that very few women will report sexual harassment to the police or to an investigative or advocacy institution suggests that the profile of these must be raised so that they may bring complaints to them and that the ability of these institutions to deliver satisfactory responses to complainants must also be improved. She said the Association has recommended the need to formulate best practices in the workplace and academia and that there should be advocacy to minimize the incident of sexual harassment.

Government, employers, workers and the public must be sensitised to adopt a zero tolerance policy towards sexual harassment.

Ms. Bossman said the Africa Women Lawyers Association in collaboration with Dr. Ken Attafuah, Executive Secretary of the National Reconciliation Commission, has developed a checklist of best practices for workplace and academic institutions to encourage discussions to break down the barriers to an honest communication of the subject, to promote greater societal awareness of the dangers of sexual harassment as a workplace or schoolyard hazard and to explore solutions. Mrs. Rose Karikari Annan, Executive Director of the Ghana Employers Association, urged AWLA to come out with a clear definition of sexual harassment and to create conducive conditions for people to report sexual harassment.