FOR victims of sexual harassment, it is the fear of being disbelieved that stops many from reporting abuse. Recently however, energised by the global #MeToo movement, women are courageously taking to social media to expose the sheer scale of harassment in this country. About a week ago, more than 18 young students from Bahria College in Islamabad anonymously detailed on social media their experiences of harassment and abuse. The alleged perpetrator, a federal board-appointed examiner overseeing the college’s biology exams, stands accused of physically molesting these young girls as their Facebook and Twitter testimonies revealed. On Saturday, another young woman posted on Twitter about an incident from 2016 when, according to her, the same examiner inappropriately touched her. Many of the girls who sat these exams over three days alleged they were groped, subjected to sexual innuendoes and threatened into silence by the examiner who was also accused of harassment at another school in 2014. More shockingly female teachers present in the laboratory warned students to remain silent or their grades would be impacted. Surely, the university must be held to account for its failure to report such behaviour immediately, given that it is responsible for the safety of students.

Unfortunately, sexual harassment in our schools and universities is not uncommon and many students have complained about offensive advances by teachers and professors. Probes should be conducted into such allegations, and those found guilty punished by the education authorities so that others in positions of power in the academia are deterred. All academic institutes need unbiased inquiry committees to probe complaints so that victims are not discouraged from speaking out. Another alternative is to approach a provincial or the federal ombudsperson for protection against workplace harassment as they are legally mandated to investigate complaints of abuse and misconduct. After having to duck and dodge their way around men’s bad behaviour for years, it is clear Pakistani women will no longer be silenced.

Published in Dawn, June 4th, 2018