Ghana needs sexual harassment law – FIDA Director

The Acting Executive Director of International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA-GHANA) Susan Aryeetey, has highlighted the impact of sexual harassment on victims.

“The impact is very serious. It leads to depression. Ladies cannot learn because they see lecturers and start panting”.

Lawyer Aryeetey made the observation on Onua FM’s Yen Sempa while speaking on sexual harassment in schools and offices on Tuesday.

She mentioned that touching someone can even amount to sexual harassment.

The Director of FIDA pointed out that some women have had their dignity bruised with others “committing suicide as a result of sexual harassment”.

Culture

Lawyer Aryeetey also stated that some cultural practices have elements of sexual harassment which people tend to overlooked.

“We have the cultural dimension. People take cow and they feel they have bought the woman”, she observed.

Laws

She called for a specific law to combat sexual harassment, noting that the current laws are not too helpful.

“We don’t have the definition in our laws and that is serious. Due to the alleged sex for grades expose, Nigeria now has anti sexual harassment law and that must be replicated in Ghana because there are no explicit laws on sexual harassment.”

Lawyer Aryeetey saw “sexual harassment as a disease” that must be cured.