Global Pulse 2010-Empowering Women and Girls

Women and girls in many countries have made major strides in achieving greater equality and access to economic opportunity in recent years. However, they still trail men significantly in areas such as economic and political participation and are rarely viewed as change agents or leaders in society.

Women and girls continue to face challenges. These include violence, early marriage, high rates of HIV/AIDS infections, access to credit, land ownership, fair pay for formal employment, and food security and nutritional problems. Improving the lives of women and girls is therefore a universal good for our societies. An empowered woman or girl can make significant contributions to her family, community and her nation's economy.

As President Obama summarized in his Cairo speech, "I am convinced that our daughters can contribute just as much to society as our sons. Our common prosperity will be advanced by allowing all humanity—men and women—to reach their full potential."

Awareness to sexual harassment (by Sumyee Fong)

Sexual harassment is unwanted and offensive sexual advances or of sexually offensive remarks or acts, especially by one in a superior or supervisory position or when acquiescence to such behavior is a condition of continued employment, promotion or when acquiescence to such behavior is a condition of continued employment, promotion, or satisfactory evaluation. In other hand, sexual harassment is coercion, threat or bullying of a sexual nature in the manner of unwelcome or inappropriate promise of rewards in exchange for sexual favors. Sexual harassment is a form of illegal employment discrimination in many countries. Sexual harassment can be divided into sexual abuse or sexual assault. In society nowadays, women and girls are dare to face different kind of challenges, to defend for women’s right, preventing for sexual harassment has become key goals of legal decision-making.

Illegal sexual harassment can occur in a variety of circumstances. Due to the different level or standard, often but not always, the harasser is in a position of power or authority over the victim. Sexual harassment by harasser may embrace any sexually motivated behavior considered offensive by the victim. Legal recourse is available in cases that occur in the workplace, though it is very difficult to obtain convictions. The harasser can be anyone included client, colleague, teacher or professor, boss or stranger. They may not directly harass to the victim but their attitude and behavior offensive.
The victim can be any gender. The harasser can be any gender. It is not necessary have to be of the opposite sex.

Sexualized environments are environments where obscenities, sexual joking, sexually explicit graffiti, viewing Internet pornography, sexually degrading posters and objects, etc., are common. None of these behaviors or objects may necessarily be directed at anyone in particular or intended as harassment. However, they can create an offensive environment, and one that is consistent with "hostile environment sexual harassment". The harasser may be completely unaware that his or her behavior is offensive or constitutes sexual harassment or may be completely unaware that his or her actions could be unlawful. Misunderstanding between Female-Male Communication: It can result from a situation where one thinks he/she is making themselves clear, but is not understood the way they intended. The misunderstanding can either be reasonable or unreasonable. An example of unreasonable is when a man holds a certain stereotypical view of a woman such that he did not understand the woman’s explicit message to stop.(Heyman, 1994)


For those women who are being harassed by their superior, half of them might not dare to voice out or report to the police due the unwanted joblessness. The sexual harassment will be continuing unless enforcement carried out to the harasser.

Effects of sexual harassment can vary depending on the individual, and the severity and duration of the harassment. Often, sexual harassment incidents fall into the category of the "merely annoying." However, many situations can, and do, have life-altering effects particularly when they involve severe/chronic abuses, and/or retaliation against a victim who does not submit to the harassment, or who complains about it openly. Indeed, psychologists and social workers report that severe/chronic sexual harassment can have the same psychological effects as rape or sexual assault.

Here are some common effects to the victim
• Loss financial support/ jobless
• Decrease work performance / academic performance
• Dread to the stranger or opposite gender and loss trust to them.
• Loss of self-confident
• Loss or trust in environment similar to the harassment occurred
• Defamation of character and reputation
• Extreme stress upon relationships with significant others


How to against sexual harassment?
• By law- there is only one law in existence that come close to dealing with the issue of sexual harassment in Malaysia-Panel Code, section 509.
“whoever, intending to insult the modesty of any women, utters any words, makes any sound or gesture or exhibit any object, intending that such word or sound shall be heard, or such gesture or object shall be seen by such woman, shall be punish with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 5 years or with fine, or with both”.

Source: Lawyerment.com.my (Malaysia Online Legal Resources)