Category: Work Place Harassment

Police on Tuesday arrested two suspects after a video of a female student of the 10th grade went viral on social media. In the clip she complained that she and her family and friends were being harassed.

According to the video, the girl was a resident of Essa Nagri. She said her family background wasn’t financially strong. She also said that for the past couple of years they were being harassed and were now unable to continue living there.

She pointed out that many of the locals there had been harassing and threatening them. She said that whenever she or her sister or friends went out, they were stopped by the men, who threatened to kill or kidnap them if they refused to befriend them.

The girl said that her mother had been mentally ill ever since her accident, adding that the family was being supported by only her grandmother, and that she herself had been trying to look for a job.

She said that last week she was returning home with her sister, cousin and friend, when one of the locals slapped her sister. After that the family complained to the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA).

She said that when her parents were returning from the FIA, another man beat up her father. She claimed that the local police were involved with the people harassing them. The girl said she also attempted to take her own life by consuming a toxic substance.

She said the locals came to their house and threatened her mother, adding that when her mother went out of the house, the men misbehaved with her. “I appeal to you all to please get me justice.”

After the video went viral on social media, Sindh Governor Imran Ismail took notice of it and ordered the provincial police chief to arrest the people involved in the incident.

The police then raided the locality and arrested two men, who were identified as Anwar Zada, alias Kamal, and Younus Buneri. The officials initially said the police would register a case against the suspects if the family refused to do so.

Moreover, at the time of their arrest, the girl who had shared the video said she was consulting with her family about becoming a complainant in the case.

Later, on her complaint, the PIB Colony police registered FIR No. 231/20 under sections 354, 506-B, 504, 337-A and 509 of the Pakistan Penal Code, and sections 6(2) and 6(3) of the Domestic Violence (Prevention & Protection) Act 2013.

Newspaper: The News

ISLAMABAD-Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) is formulating a policy to counter harassment issues at private educational institutions, a statement said on Wednesday.

The statement issued by PEIRA said that an emergency meeting of the School Education Reforms Committee (SERC) was called in response to the recent harassment issues reported in educational institutions.

The 2nd meeting of SERC was held at the office of PEIRA that was attended by the Parliamentary Secretary for Federal Education and Professional Training Wajiha Akram and Chairperson PEIRA Zia Batool, wherein, other members including experts of the field and educationists.

The statement said that PEIRA has constituted a committee on school education reforms keeping in view the policy gaps and lack of implementation frameworks for already existing policies such as Harassment at Workplace Act of 2010 and HEC’s policy on addressing harassment issues in universities.

It also said the government is deliberating on introducing a new legislative framework after making a policy-gap analysis, by adopting an integrated approach and focused efforts.

The committee has also highlighted the need for addressing transforming trends in harassment cases such as cyber bullying etc., with special consideration to the online mode of teaching that has been adopted by educational institutions since the outbreak of COVID-19.

Chairperson PEIRA shared that the policy guidelines will be consulted for drafting the planned legislative framework that will also provide further cover for effective implementation of the policy. Since, a robust and feasible policy document is required with precise and implementable recommendations at all kinds of educational setups, be it a private or public entity. The SERC is mandated for finalising the “Policy for Counteracting Harassment Issues in Educational Institutions.”

The committee will complete the policy guidelines by July 31, 2020 and the recommendations will be forwarded to the Ministry of Federal Education and Professional Training for consolidation and introduction of a new robust legislative framework to attend to such issues in educational setups in Pakistan. This will be a significant milestone for addressing psychological and emotional issues that will improve mental health of teachers and students and ensure conducive teaching-learning environment.

Newspaper: Nation

LAHORE: The city has been rocked by a scandal at a ‘top-notch’ school wherein teachers allegedly sexually harassed teenaged girls, leading to a public outcry and corroborations that the practice was long rampant.

The news of four male teachers allegedly harassing students and subsequently being shown the door by the private school has disturbed both parents and educationists about how unsafe even one of the most elite schools could be.

The Lahore Grammar School’s (LGS) 1A1 branch located in Ghalib Market has fired four teachers over allegations of sexual harassment and sending objectionable pictures and messages to at least eight female students. The students spoke up about these allegations on social media in detail. As the issue went public, more students from the school stepped forward sharing their experiences with the same teachers as well as students from other schools, showing how rampant harassment at schools was.

One of the accused teachers, A, whose screenshots of private pictures were also shared, used to teach debate and politics at the school. Reportedly, he had been sending such pictures and text messages to teenage girls for almost four years and was accused by students from almost every branch of the school.

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Private institute sacks four teachers following harassment allegations by multiple girls

Meanwhile, the school – whose name has been mentioned in mainstream and social media – has not issued a public statement on the issue. Inside sources said the school management was troubled over the development and “trying its best” to reach a solid solution. “Teachers and directors of all the schools are deeply concerned over the revelations,” said the source. “However, what’s problematic is that the students also claimed that the administration turned a blind eye to their complaints.”

Much of the conversation took place on a page on social media platform, Instagram, about alumni of the branch in question. It has posted detailed accounts from students who faced the alleged harassment.

“He used to bite his lip whenever he talked to me, which made me uncomfortable,” said one girl.

Another complained that the teacher forced her to take a picture with him saying he would look at it right before going to sleep every night. Yet another girl claimed that when she tried to complain about him, he came to the class and while looking at her threatened that he would “fix anyone who tried to defame him”, including by deducting marks.

“The culture is to shame a person who complains,” said a source, N, who said it was not just about [this particular school], but every other school. “Cover-up is the usual reaction. But this is also because parents don’t want to take action. A mother, who said her daughter complained about the school security guard ogling at her, said she solved the problem by making her daughter wear abaya to school rather than complain,” she maintained.

On the other hand, in some cases, fellow students have been accused of sexual harassment as well. A teacher made a shocking revelation about a group of boys from elite schools. “A year or two ago, one of my students was gang-raped by these boys, and she eventually tried to kill herself,” the teacher claimed. “She has still not fully recovered.”

She further said she had heard that there was a gang of students, called Born to Kill, which harassed girls.

Nighat Dad of the Digital Rights Foundation corroborates such happenings.

“We have seen incidents of blackmail and sexual harassment coming from male students – and we have seen this across the board,” she says. “Even though this has happened before, during the lockdown, things took a turn for the worse. There was a massive wave of pages on Facebook and Instagram where pictures of girls would be uploaded to blackmail them.”

One thing was common, she said, that all these students were from private schools. “Most of them knew these girls would not reach out to their families and schools for help. And in exchange for removing the pictures, they would demand an [objectionable] picture of the girl or her friends.”

None of the suspected teachers or the school administration officials responded to Dawn’s messages or calls.

Students of the said school have also started an online petition against the teachers as well as “custodial staff”. A staff member from one of its branches said there was no harassment policy. “They define ‘inappropriate conduct’, but there is no set policy” despite government directives.

Newspaper:  Dawn

KARACHI: A local court on Thursday remanded in police custody two suspects detained for allegedly harassing a female student in the Essa Nagri area.

The suspects were arrested for allegedly harassing a grade-X student and other female residents within the remit of the PIB police station.

On Thursday, the investigating officer produced both the suspects before the judicial magistrate (East) to seek their physical remand for interrogation and investigation.

The IO informed that a video went viral of a girl complaining about harassment by the suspects, who were detained on her complaint.

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The IO further informed that according to the complainant both the men used to harass the complainant and other girls in the locality and also threatened to kidnap them if they complained against them.

The complainant claimed that last week when she was returning home with her sister, cousin and friend one of the locals slapped her sister.

She added that her parents went to lodge a complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency and when they were returning from the FIA office another man beat her father.

The girl claimed that the local police were involved with the people harassing them, adding that she once attempted to commit suicide by consuming a toxic substance.

The IO asked the court to grant 14-day physical remand of the suspects in police custody for interrogation since investigation was still incomplete.

However, the judge granted two-day physical remand of the suspects in police custody with the direction to the IO to produce them on the next date along with an investigation report.

Earlier, the Sindh governor had reportedly taken notice of the girl’s video message circulating on social media and ordered the provincial police chief to arrest the persons involved in the incident.

A case was registered under Sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 506-B (punishment for criminal intimidation), 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace), 337-A (punishment for shajjah) and 509 (insulting modesty or causing sexual harassment) of the Pakistan Penal Code read with Sections 6(2) and 6(3) of the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act, 2013 at the PIB Colony police station.

Newspaper: Dawn

PESHAWAR:The higher education institutions in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa have a brand new battle on their hands. Already mired in controversy, it turns out that cases of harassment are now adding to their long list of troubles.

“So far, we have received 70 complaints. Out of that 50 are from academic institutions,” claimed Khyber-Pakhtu¬nkhwa (K-P) Ombudsperson Rukhshanda Naz.

Female students, Naz said, had no idea how and where to file complaints. “We need to launch awareness campaigns to inform female students about the process of filing complaints,” the ombudsperson said. Harassment cases, according to experts, are severely underreported in male-dominated societies like K-P. “Victims are discouraged from reporting incidents of harassment,” said one expert speaking on the condition of anonymity. To address the issue, that appears to be haunting universities in the province, the ombudsperson urged universities and departments to form committees to investigate such cases.

While harassment cases have rocked Gomal University, officials at the University of Peshawar claimed only eight cases surfaced in the past three years. “Since 2017, we have only received eight complaints at the University of Peshawar. None of them are against the faculty,” claimed Dr. Abdur Rauf, who heads the harassment committee at the university.

Already irked over the financial crisis that confronts universities across the province, Governor Shah Farman fired a stern warning to academic institutions over the rising harassment cases.

Facing a series of overlapping crises, Gomal University in Dera Ismail Khan was the first academic institution that came under fire for several harassment cases. In response, the governor sacked four employees of the university.

“I have warned universities to improve their affairs, or face serious consequences,” cautioned Governor Farman, who also serves as the chancellor. “Universities should have a zero-tolerance policy when dealing with harassment cases,” the governor added.

In a pickle

Mired in a severe financial crisis, universities across the provinces are struggling to make ends meet. So far, Gomel University, Malakand University, Bacha Khan University, and University of Engineering and Technology, have requested the government for a financial bailout.

The University of Peshawar, one of the oldest academic institutions in the country, faces a financial shortfall of Rs. 300million. Commenting on the financial crunch, Vice-Chancellor Professor Muhammad Asif Khan said the federal government announced Rs.20billion for universities in K-P. However, he said, the university has not received its share. With 2,800 employees, an ever growing force of retired staff, and a 50% cut in the education sector budget, the university is finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet.

Similarly, the University of Agriculture appears to be in a financial fix. “We don’t have the funds to pay our pensioners. The university needs Rs400 million,” said Director Finance Professor Dr Zulfiqar.

The Express Tribune