laws Archives | Stop Street Harassment

16 Days – Day 7: A Job for a Woman

December 1, 2018 By HKearl

Each day across the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence, we will highlight a 2018 activism effort undertaken to stop street harassment or a personal story about stopping harassers!

Day #7: A Job for a Woman

In Belgium, sexism in public places is illegal under a law passed in 2014. This year, the first charge was made using the law. A female police officer questioned a man after he jaywalked, and he said in response to her, “Shut your mouth, I don’t talk to women, being a police officer is not a job for women.” Apparently it IS a job for women (more than 30 percent of Belgium’s 40,000 police officers are women), and she arrested him. He was fined 3,000 euros.

Sexism, according to the law, is defined as “every gesture or deed” that is “clearly meant to express contempt of a person based on sex,” or considers a person inferior based on sex, or reduces a person solely to a sexual dimension, and which “gravely affects the dignity of that person as a result.”

DC’s New Law Against Street Harassment

August 4, 2018 By HKearl

*April 2018 rally in support of SHPA led by Collective Action for Safe Spaces in DC*

The Council of the District of Columbia recently passed the Street Harassment Prevention Act of 2018 (SHPA), the first legislation of its kind in the United States. It is one of more than 20 laws addressing street harassment to pass globally since 2012, and laws are under consideration in a dozen more places.

The SHPA is groundbreaking in creating the first legal definition of street harassment in the United States, calling it “disrespectful, offensive or threatening statements, gestures or other conduct directed at an individual in a high-risk area without the individual’s consent and based on the individual’s actual or perceived … protected trait identified in the [DC] Human Rights Act of 1977.” It also uniquely focuses on prevention through education instead of criminalization.

Specifically, the SHPA establishes an advisory committee on street harassment that will propose model policies and training materials to be implemented in the District; require the Office of Human Rights (OHR) to conduct the first citywide survey on street harassment; and require OHR to conduct a public information campaign about street harassment. Further, grant money will be provided for street harassment awareness programs.

The advocacy organization Collective Action for Safe Spaces (CASS), which uses community-based solutions through an intersectional lens to address street harassment, was instrumental in the passage of SHPA. Deputy director Chantal Coudoux noted that one of its strengths is that is was “developed and advocated for by directly impacted community members and organizations led by survivors of harassment and assault” through speak-outs and in-person and online story-sharing.

Read how SHPA compares to laws elsewhere in this article I wrote for Women’s Media Center.

DC Councilmember Nadeau

DC Councilmember Brianne Nadeau introduced the SHPA and did an interview for me about it.

HK: Why did you feel it was important to see the Street Harassment Prevention Act pass?

BN: I pushed for the first-ever Council roundtable hearing on street harassment, and introduced this bill because I experienced this kind of harassment on a regular basis, and so did many of the women I spoke to. At the hearing, Councilmembers heard heartbreaking stories that really demonstrated how pervasive street harassment is for many of our vulnerable populations. The District is a place where everyone should feel welcome, but the unfortunate truth is that street harassment is a shared experience facing many of our vulnerable populations.

HK: What do you think has led Washington, D.C. to be a leader in the USA on addressing street harassment?

BN: I think it took women being in power and feeling like their concerns would be taken seriously, as well as strong support from organizations in the community. It’s not an issue that’s unique to Washington, but there was a political will to deal with the issue, and strong community based organizations working on this issue like Collective Action for Safe Spaces who were instrumental in helping craft this bill.

Our understanding is that this is the first time any US state or city has legally defined street harassment. There are existing laws that are sometimes applied when street harassment is taking place, but they’re typically laws that are about other kinds of assault or harassment. Our understanding is that this is the first time a US state or city has legally defined street harassment, the first citywide data collection on the issue in the US and the first law to address the issue without criminalization. Again, our understanding is that most other countries have tried to implement fines for street harassment so this is the first to address street harassment without criminalization. Here is an article that has some good information: Citylab

HK: What do you hope DC will look like in 5 years because of the law?

BN: We wrote this bill while being sensitive to the fact that young people, members of the LGBTQ community, people from communities of color, people experiencing homelessness, and people from low-income communities experience more frequent and severe harassment. The law is focused on education and culture change because any solution to the problem shouldn’t be an excuse to disproportionately target those same communities through criminalization.

The legislation establishes an advisory committee which will develop policies, guidelines and procedures to educate District employees to identify and address street harassment; evaluate and make recommendations regarding reporting street harassment; and conduct a survey to collect data so that we have a better understanding on the pervasiveness of street harassment. Grant money will be provided for street harassment awareness programs. The bill targets areas where harassment is more common such as public transportation, cabs and ride-sharing services, bars, restaurants, night clubs, schools, colleges, sidewalks, parks and other public spaces.

This law sends a strong message that harassing one another on the street is not something that Washingtonians will stand for. In five years, I hope street harassment is much less common than it is today. I want people who have experienced harassment to feel safer on our streets and I want all residents to understand what street harassment is, to understand how to call it out, and how to intervene. In five years, I hope our culture shifts and it’s viewed as an unacceptable public behavior, as it should be.

Latest News on Street Harassment Laws

June 6, 2018 By HKearl

Last week, thanks to the efforts of our partners Collective Action for Safe Spaces, Washington, D.C. became the first city in the country to pass a dedicated anti-street harassment law. This effort began in 2015 and SSH board member Layla Moughari and I were among the dozens of people to testify about street harassment at a round-table organized by the DC City Council.

Via ThinkProgress:

“The Council of the District of Columbia passed the Street Harassment Prevention Act as part of the budget on Wednesday, which would create a definition of street harassment, collect data on harassment, train government employees to recognize and intervene in harassment, and create education campaigns, among other measures.”

This law creates the first legal definition of street harassment in the nation and it is one that builds on the definition the SSH board wrote a few years ago.

It includes “unwanted, disrespectful, or threatening comments, gestures, or other actions forced on a stranger in a public place without their consent, directed at someone because actual or perceived gender, sexual orientation, identity or expression, race, ethnicity, religion, national origin, or any other characteristic identified in the Human Rights Act of 1977.”

This isn’t the only timely thing happening:

A national law against street harassment is under debate in the French Senate (after passing in the National Assembly in May).
In April, a city in Chile became the first in the country to pass an anti-street harassment ordinance.
Some parliament members in the UK are advocating for street harassment to be made a hate crime nationally, as it already is classified in Nottinghamshire.

Indonesia: Is Women-Only Transport Effective?

July 26, 2017 By Correspondent

Astrid Nikijuluw, Serpong, Banten, Indonesia SSH Blog Correspondent

English version below.

AREA KHUSUS WANITA PADA TRANSPORTASI UMUM: EFEKTIF?

Kereta pagi meluncur dari stasiun Manggarai menuju stasiun tanah abang. Di dalam penumpang kereta yang berdesak-desakkan, terdapat Agnes yang hendak berangkat menuju kantor. Tiba-tiba dari arah belakang dia merasakan sesuatu yang aneh. Sontak ia segera berbalik badan dan dengan lantang berteriak ke muka pria yang tepat berdiri di belakangnya,”Heh! Kamu sengaja ya gesek-gesek?!” Pria tersebut tidak bisa mengelak dan di stasiun berikutnya dia pun diturunkan oleh petugas dan dilaporkan pada pihak berwenenang.

Kisah diatas merupakan ilustrasi dari kejadian pelecehan seksual yang kerap terjadi di transportasi umum di Indonesia. Banyaknya pengguna kereta di pagi hari mengakibatkan hal-hal seperti ini terkadang sulit dihindari. Kejadian pelecehan seksual seperti yang terjadi pada KRL juga terjadi pada penumpang wanita Bis Trans Jakarta. Beruntung pemerintah cukup peduli dengan hal tersebut. PT Kereta Api Indonesia melalui PT KAI Commuter Jabodetabek (KCJ) terhitung sejak tanggal 1 Oktober 2012 meresmikan kereta khusus wanita. Gerbong khusus ini biasanya terdapat pada gerbong pertama dan gerbong terakhir dari rangkaian KRL. Selain pada transportasi kereta api, transportasi umum lainnya yang juga terdapat area khusus wanita adalah Bis Trans Jakarta. Bis Trans Jakarta juga merupakan sarana umum yang kerap digunakan oleh para pekerja setiap harinya. Dengan adanya area-area khusus wanita tersebut dapat pemerintah Indonesia melalui PT KCJ seperti yang diungkapkan oleh Eva Chairunissa selaku VP Communications PT KCJ dapat mengakomodasi permintaan para pengguna KRL yang merasa risih harus berdempet-dempetan dengan lawan jenis. Selain itu ia juga mengharapkan agar dengan adanya gerbong khusus wanita dapat menghindari kejadian-kejadian yang tidak diharapkan yang korbannya lebih sering perempuan. (https://news.detik.com/berita/d-3504057/sejarah-gerbong-krl-khusus-wanita-di-indonesia-dan-negara-lain)

Saya sebagai salah satu pengguna reguler KRL sangat mengapresiasi tindakan pemerintah dalam mengurangi pelecehan seksual terhadap pengguna wanita baik di kereta maupun di Bis. Kejadian seperti ilustrasi kisah diatas memang sangat mengganggu bahkan cenderung menjadi terror yang cukup menakutkan bagi sebagian wanita terutama para korban dari tindakan asusila tersebut. Saya merasa cukup beruntung tidak pernah mengalami kejadian ini. Dalam pengamatan saya membaca berita-berita, semenjak diadakannya area khusus wanita baik pada kereta api maupun bis trans Jakarta, kasus pelecehan seksual pada transportasi umum tidak sebanyak sebelumnya. Namun apakah hal ini bisa dibilang efektif untuk menanggulangi kasus-kasus pelecehan seksual yang terjadi pada sarana transporasi umum? Saya rasa hal ini masih harus dikaji lebih dalam. Coba sama-sama kita bayangkan. Untuk merasa lebih aman, pengguna kereta wanita yang jumlahnya bisa mencapai puluhan bahkan ratusan ribu per harinya harus rela berdesak-desakkan dalam 2 gerbong yang tersedia. Berita-berita terakhir bahkan menunjukkan kejadian tidak mengenakkan di gerbong wanita seperti adu mulut berebut tempat duduk. Sehingga akhirnya sebagian dari mereka tetap menggunakan gerbong biasa dengan resiko bisa mengalami kejadian pelecehan seksual. Dan apabila memang terjadi, akankah mereka disalahkan karena ‘memilih dengan sengaja’ gerbong yang bukan dikhususkan untuk wanita?

Buat saya kejelasan hukum juga menjadi poin penting dalam rangka pencegahan kasus pelecehan seksual tersebut. Dari penelitian singkat saya mengenai kasus-kasus pelecehan seksual yang terjadi di transportasi umum, pelaku tidak mendapat hukum yang setimpal, bahkan dalam beberapa kasus dibebaskan karena dianggap ‘hanya’ melakukan percobaan. Bukankah segala sesuatu itu berawal dari ‘mencoba’? Kalau berhasil diteruskan. Justru titik krusial menurut saya adalah pada saat mencoba ini. Jika dari hal ini saja sudah ‘dibolehkan’ secara hukum maka jangan heran kalau kasus pelecehan seksual masih akan dan terus berlangsung di transportasi umum. Sejauh ini saya belum menemukan hukuman yang dapat memberikan efek jera kepada para pelaku kejahatan seksual tersebut. Sekali lagi seperti yang pernah saya tulis sebelumnya, hal ini masih belum dianggap serius. Padahal efek yang ditimbulkan kepada para korban sangat dalam. Berdasarkan laman resmi dari Komnas Perempuan (komnasperempuan.go.id) pelecehan seksual dikategorikan ‘hanya’ sebagai perbuatan yang tidak menyenangkan dalam hukum Indonesia. Hal inilah menurut saya yang masih perlu perbaikan.

Upaya pemerintah dengan mengadakan area khusus wanita pada transportasi umum patut kita hargai. Setidaknya pemerintah masih peduli terhadap kasus-kasus pelecehan seksual yang kerap terjadi pada pengguna wanita. Namun alangkah baiknya apabila langkah yang sudah baik ini diikuti pula dengan payung hukum yang sepadan. Kita semua juga tahu tidak mungkin semua penumpang wanita berada di area khusus wanita. Sebagian akan tetap berada di area umum. Dengan hukum yang jelas dan bisa menimbulkan efek jera, akan sangat menunjang usaha pengurangan tingkat pelecehan seksual di area publik dan transportasi umum. Jika tidak maka jangan heran apabila kejadian seperti akan tetap berlangsung tanpa dapat dicegah.

Astrid received her Bachelors of Business at Queensland University of Technology Brisbane Australia. She finished her Master’s Degree at Gadjah Mada University Yogyakarta where she majored in Human Resource Development. Follow her on Twitter at @AstridNiki or on Facebook.

The morning train is on its way from Manggarai station to Tanah Abang station. Among those many people, there was Agnes who is on her way to the office. Suddenly she feels something disturbing. She quickly turns her body angrily and yells at the man standing behind her, “Hei! Are you intentionally touching my back with your p***s?! The man cannot avoid the accusation and in the next station he is brought to the post for further process.

The above story is an illustration of how the sexual harassment happens on public transportation in Indonesia. The crowds of people using the trains and buses in their daily morning makes that behavior seems unavoidable.

Luckily the government has shown their concern towards this matter. Since October 1, 2012, PT Kereta Api Indonesia (Indonesian Train Company) through PT KAI COMMUTER JABODETABEK (KCJ) has run women-only transit carriages in the front and back of the train. In addition to the train, the trans-Jakarta bus, which is also a common mode of transportation, has a special area for women, the first few rows behind the driver.

Eva Chairunissa, the VP Communications of PT KCJ, said the women-only areas are meant to help women riders feel more comfortable. The government hopes that the women-only areas are decreasing the levels of sexual harassment and that people are more comfortable using the public transportation.

I, as one of the public transportation user, really appreciate what the government has done in order to reduce the level of sexual harassment in public transportation. I am lucky enough to never have experienced such an incident, but based on what I’ve read in the news, the sexual harassment cases have gone down since the launch of the women-only areas.

However is it really effective at decreasing the level of sexual harassment in public transportation? I think it still needs to be reviewed. Let’s imagine. To feel more comfortable and safe, women passengers, who are up to hundreds of thousands in number each day have to use only two carriages on the train or the first few rows on the trans-Jakarta bus. There is simply not enough space for all women and there are often arguments over seating. Thus, many women still use the regular area in the public transportation and face the risk of experiencing sexual harassment there. And of course if and when that happens, some may blame them for choosing the “wrong” area.

In my opinion, women-only options are not enough. The clarity of the law is also very important in order to prevent sexual harassment. From my own research of news stories, the punishment for the perpetrators are not worth it, even in some cases they are not being punished because they were ‘only’ just ‘trying’ to sexually harass the victim…. But doesn’t everything start from trying? If they succeed, they may do it again. The crucial moment for me is at the stage of ‘trying’. If this stage is ‘allowed’ according to law, then no wonder sexual harassment cases in public transportation still occur. Thus far, I haven’t found any punishment that would realistically act as a deterrent to the perpetrators. Once again, as my two last articles had stated, this kind of behavior has not yet been taken seriously.

Based on the KOMNAS PEREMPUAN (National Commission On Violence Against Women) website, by law, sexual harassment is categorized only as a “disturbing behavior” that is on the same level as other behavior, such as cheating. This is what needs to be improved. The current sexual harassment law is not at all adequate to accommodate the range of every day behaviors.

The government’s plan for preventing sexual harassment in public transportation by creating women-only areas is well-respected. At least the government has done something. However, it would be much better if this action was accompanied with a decent law, especially as many women still use the regular sections of public transportation. Therefore a stronger law will help reduce the sexual harassment cases on a larger scale in public spaces, including public transportation. Otherwise, we can’t be surprised when sexual harassment incidents continue to occur.

Street Harassment is Illegal in Buenos Aires

December 8, 2016 By HKearl

Another city passed a law against street harassment in Latin America!

Via Broadly:

“In a unanimous vote, the city of Buenos Aires has enacted a law making public sexual harassment illegal in hopes of diminishing gender-based violence….

The law takes both a punitive and educational approach. It creates an easy way for women to report street harassment as a crime and requires police to take the situation seriously, which has not always been the case in Argentina. Proven cat-callers could be slammed with small fines or court-mandated public service. The legislation also creates educational campaigns within the health, education, and transportation ministries that would teach Argentines that any comment or interaction in the street still requires a woman’s consent. These programs will also emphasize how to spot street harassment and intervene on a victim’s behalf.”

Stay tuned, for UN Women I am working on a guide about street harassment and laws around the world, and I will share a full list in the coming weeks.