From a young age, many women are societally conditioned to accept acts of sexual harassment made against them. We are taught to excuse predatory behaviour and classify them as jokes, compliments and harmless fun. Of course, with sexual harassment being viewed this way, many victims tend to brush off acts of sexual misconduct against them as just a part of the norm. As a result, it usually goes unchecked and festers, particularly in workplace environments. Under Guyana’s Prevention of Discrimination Act of 1997, sexual harassment is a criminal offence. However, coverage under the law for sexual harassment only specifies the workplace. This points to one of the many gaps that exist in tackling the very prevalent issue.
There is often the incorrect belief that sexual harassment only refers to things such as the catcalls many of us Guyanese women are forced to suffer through on an almost daily basis. While catcalls definitely is one of the most popular forms, the fact is that sexual harassment refers to any unwanted sexual advance, request for sexual favours, and other verbal or physical conduct of a sexual nature. Some instances that classify as sexual harassment are such as when there is unwanted hugging, kissing, touching, cornering, sexual teasing, jokes, sexual gestures, pressure for dates and letters and calls or materials of a sexual nature.
Whenever cases of sexual harassment and assault come around, many tend to look to see if the person is the “perfect victim” before examining the substance of their allegation. The perfect victim is expected to act and look a certain way. If you do not seem sufficiently distressed or vulnerable enough to those who have tasked themselves with judging you, then chances are that it might not have happened and you might just be simply seeking attention, money or whatever other inane excuse they come up with. Many persons are not psychologically prepared to accept the common occurrence of sexual harassment and assault; as such they tend to look for reasons to not believe. The fact is that sexual harassment does not have a perfect victim. It transcends age, gender, sexual orientation, class, racial and ethnic groups, educational backgrounds, and occupational and professional categories. Basically, it affects everyone. Even with available recourse for action, victim shaming, fear of repercussions and power moves by the harasser and their enablers, sees many victims either sitting on their stories or choosing to leave.
Only recently, several media outlets carried the report of an employee at an airport concessionaire who complained that she was forcibly kissed and held without her consent by a senior official at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport. While she reported the sexual misconduct the next day to CJIA’s Chief Executive Officer, several months passed with no word on her complaint. It was only after the harassed employee behaved “bad” as to why there was no movement on the matter that she received a message from the Human Resources department saying that the matter was “addressed.” It was not explained to her what that meant.
Unable to find help internally, she turned to the media and subsequently made a report at the Timehri Police Station. While the senior official has proceeded on leave amidst the investigations, the airport concessionaire employee had her security credentials revoked. By revoking her credentials the airport management forced her to proceed on leave from her workplace that is located inside the airport. While her job is secure and her employers at the concessionaire supportive, she believes that the airport will do whatever it can to cover itself.
The thing about sexual assault is that it is common and the thing about perpetrators is that they usually have more than just one victim. So it was not surprising to me when other allegations of sexual misconduct at CJIA against the very same senior official were made several days after the story was reported in the press. Four women in 2012 had reportedly walked off the job after repeated unwanted advances and pressure for them to have sexual relations with the official. One of the women was a teenager at the time.
Details were recounted of being targeted by the official who had the habit of regularly calling female employees into his office to be reprimanded for their work and locking the door. In another instance, the teenager stated he touched her breast, leg and thigh without her consent. She would soon after resign and three other employees who had similar experiences to her, followed suit and also resigned.
While these women were traumatized and had to seek alternative employment due to unwanted sexual advances, the alleged perpetrator of the act remained in place. Section 8 of the PDA states that: “Any act of sexual harassment against an employee committed by an employer, managerial employee or co-worker shall constitute unlawful discrimination based on sex within the meaning of Section 4 of this Act.”
While the grounds mentioned in Section 4 cover race, sex, religion and ethnic origin, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression are notably missing. As a result, members of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Trans community are not protected from sexual harassment in the workplace under the law. Lesbian and bisexual women are particularly at risk given that perpetrators often fetishize their sexual identities.
What these recent cases of sexual misconduct by airport managerial staff lays bare is how many still close ranks to protect those who abuse their power. The fact that this sort of behaviour has gone unchecked for so long is indicative of CJIA’s laid- back approach to allegations of sexual harassment. While the recently released statement from their board suggests a more responsible response to allegations in the future, too often these are revealed as toothless and meant for public appeasement. CJIA is the one on the radar for now, but many of our nation’s institutions unfortunately are a safe haven for sexual predators to run amok.
Akola Thompson is a writer and social activist. You can send comments to akolathompson@gmail.com
