Jahangirpur University must not dither over policy against sexual harassment

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IT IS hardly surprising that the students of Jahangirnagar University in Bangaldesh agitated on the campus Tuesday night after its syndicate had failed to arrive at a decision on the formulation of a policy against sexual harassment.

While any kind of unruly behaviour is generally undesirable and unpardonable, regardless of the provocations and compulsions involved, the frustration of the Jahangirnagar University students is quite understandable. It's been almost a decade now that they first raised the demand for a policy against sexual harassment during a movement on the university campus in 1998, which continued for more than 40 days and is believed to be the longest anti-rape campaign in South Asia.

The movement began when the news broke that a group of male students had been involved in successive incidents of rape over several months. There were – as it appears, still are – other reasons, too. Off and on, female students of the university have levelled allegations of sexual harassment at one male teacher or the other and, in most cases, the teachers were found guilty and subsequently disciplined. In fact, the ongoing movement is also for removal of a dramatics teacher of the university accused of harassing female students.   

Thus far, the university administration has appeared somewhat apathetic, if not antipathetic altogether, to the very proposition of a policy against sexual harassment, which could very well be construed as its essentially male chauvinistic mindset. A university or, for that matter, any higher education institution is expected to be a centre for greater learning and advancement.

More importantly, it is expected to be a space where not only free thinking is encouraged but also the dignity of individuals, irrespective of their sex and status, caste and creed, is protected and promoted. The major public universities have, seemingly, and Jahangirnagar University, visibly, failed to generally live up to such expectations.
   

The persistent refusal by the Jahangir University authorities to take positive actions, of which formulation of a policy against sexual harassment is just one, despite repeated incidents of sexual harassment of female students, both by their male counterparts and teachers, tend to indicate their refusal to break away from the predominant patriarchal as well as sexist notion and norm of treating women as lesser mortals.

What has been even more shocking, albeit not surprising, is the attitude of the successive governments over the issue. We have seen one of the previous elected governments actually protecting, if not patronising, the known offenders and another wilfully seeking to derail the movement for the policy. The military-controlled interim government, on the other hand, seemingly regards the students' movement for the policy as a law and order issue and was quick to send in riot police to handle the situation (read intimidate the protesters).   

As reported in the national media, an 11-member committee has been formed to formulate such a policy at the behest of the University Grants Commission. It is indeed a step in the right direction. However, it should by no means be used by the Jahangirnagar University administration as a pretext to defer formulation of a policy of its own against sexual harassment.