Monrovia – Gender, Children and Social Protection Minister Wilhelmina Piso Saydee-Tarr has said that sexual harassment is a threat to Liberia’s social development.
Minister Saydee-Tarr stressed the need to abolish the act at every institution of higher learning if it’s presence at those places.
According to her, it is unfortunate that sexual harassment continues to take a center stage in the country, despite the country being a signatory to several international protocols on human rights.
“Social problems continue to search across different areas of Liberia’s political subdivisions from university campuses to high school premises and from homes to workplaces, sexual harassment and exploitation remain increasingly an annoying social problem that we must fight,” Minister Saydee-Tarr noted.
Speaking recently, at the start of a strategic dialogue on making higher education safe for learning, the Gender Minister noted that sex for grade remains a major factor at higher institutions.
According to the Liberia Institute for Statistic and Geo Information Services’ (LISGIS) Demographic 2014 Survey, 43 percent of women between the ages 15 to 49 years experienced sexual harassment while about 80 percent experienced sexual violence.
This ratio, according to her, speaks largely against Liberia’s developmental drive and basic human rights in line with the 1986 Constitution.
She named the rights of life and security of a person, equality before the law and equal protection before the law, especially the prohibition of treatment against the girl child as human rights principles that sexual harassment and exploitation contravene.
The Gender, Children and Social Protection Minister believes Liberia will only advance in social behavior if “negative traditional believes and influences” are shunned by all.
These negative attributes, according to her, are meant to undermine the country’s social structures by putting women, boys and girls in the path of danger.
“Anyone who does not stand up against it is equally culpable just as the most diabolical perpetrator,” Saydee-Tarr stressed.
The Minister maintained that universal higher education for girls in Liberia would greatly help them to eliminate early child marriage.
“Sexual harassment and violence on university campuses are not only tantamount to infringing upon the rights of young women and girl but potential threats to national development,” she further stated.
Minister Tarr called for the collective efforts of Liberians to combat sexual exploitation at various institutions of higher learning in providing a free learning environment for all and avoiding what she calls, ‘educational bankruptcy.’
For her part, UN Women Country Representative to Liberia, Ms. Marie Goreth, noted that the dialogue is important to address the issue of sexual harassment not only on the UL campus, but other institutions of higher learning.
The issue of gender-based violence at school, according to her, is widely recognized as a factor that has negative impact on the livelihood of children and young people globally.
Ms. Goreth said these forms of violence are mostly perpetrated by students and teachers, who intimidate and harass them for sex and must not be tolerated in any way.
“All school environments should be safe and secure from any forms of violence, sexual embarrassment and abuse. More than 246 million children are subject to gender-based violence in school every year,” Goreth added.
The Swedish Ambassador to Liberia, Ambassador Ingrid Wetterqvist, saw the dialogue as an important moment in developing a policy against sexual abuse in Liberia.
Amb. Wetterqvist said the issues of sexual abuse must not only be seen as an issue affecting women alone, but men as well and should be combated by pair.
The Swedish diplomat cautioned students at higher learning institutions to uphold their values and should not be subjected to sexual harassment.