Khartoum: Amel M. Al Hassan
“I was arbitrarily dismissed from work. I am totally convinced the real reason behind this dismissal was my refusal to respond to after–midnight v-calls I was receiving from the institution’s manager.”
Bitterly speaking, a famous broadcaster recounted to Al Taghyeer this horrendous incident, saying: “Arriving at work one day, I was surprised by the official in charge of admin affairs handing me letter of termination; not even preceded by a warning, prior notice or any other administrative procedure.”
Her moves to question reasons of termination were to no avail. She said she had received absolutely no answer; neither from administrative affairs nor from any other official at the media outlet she had been working for, including the top management.
Speaking in anonymity, the anchor further detailed the story of the late-at-night video calls she was receiving, saying that she had been receiving WhatsApp video calls from her own general manager, mainly after midnight, which she had persistently ignored. “Trying to keep a face, I did send him a message the next morning, telling him that my phone was ringing with his number the night before, but was certain those calls were by sheer mistake,” she said. While speaking to Al Taghyeer, she explained what she wrote in her short message, saying that she had wanted to find him an excuse so that he may not feel embarrassed and, in the same time, somewhat convey to him that his gesture was not welcome so he may not repeat it. However, she said she was overwhelmed with shock when she found that he was trying to call again that same night. “So, right away, I blocked his WhatsApp number,” thus putting an end to nighttime video calls, she said; however did not expect to be sacked! She said she had the calls screenshotted for reference and documentation, indicating intended legal action to retrieve her rights; adding, “If we, as media figures, would not deal with problems confronting us, then how come we could claim to address common issues or seek others’ rights?”
Showering violations
Hiba Abdul Azim, an investigative reporter working in the field since 2007 believes journalism for women is like passing through a waterfall of violations, escaping it only by giving in to blackmail or else fall. She said blackmail usually does not necessarily come from colleagues at the same level of employment, but rather from editors-in-chief, chief editors or even board chairs. Working for many years in the field, Hiba said the only way she had been able to resume her career and made her survival possible was through belonging to supportive social groups.
M, an ambitious young woman pursuing a presenter’s career at a certain television channel, said she was taken aback by a suspicious request from programs director who formerly had her interviewed, which was to accompany him in a special picnic to this remote ranch in the outskirts of the capital, Soba. His attitude, she said, killed her dreams and forced her to seek job elsewhere! According to Hiba, the accused are not always people of influence at office. M believes that in many cases some female jurnos may also have a greater part when they give in to blackmail or pretend submissive; considering this move a step up the ladder to leading to success, without which they could neither maintain their working status, nor try to reach out for their ultimate goals, stardom. M went further to say that she personally knew a number of female reporters and columnists whose superiors often work on their behalf while they enjoy full privileges. “This is absolutely frustrating to many hardworking female journalists whose efforts are apparently met with no appreciation at all, nor recognition and, ultimately, no career advancement”, she said. Hiba also disclosed that she was subject to sexual harassment by others, such as agents of former security apparatus as well as elements of the dissolved, then ruling, National Congress Party, which made her work in press full of barricades. She added that, “I hope I could wipe away all those bitter memories, leaving not even a thought from those days; that they never again cross my mind.”
For her part, an administrative affairs employee at a prominent media outlet said the problem lies in victims reverting to silence; adding that all those subject to different types of sexual harassment do not file official complaints against harassers lest they lose their jobs or even for fear of social stigma. She said she knew at least four female employees in the same institution who were sexually harassed by the same prominent administrative official. “Although they recounted their stories personally, none of them was able to report the case so that administrative action against the harasser takes due course,” she said. The employee added in her statement to Al Taghyeer that her colleagues, the female employees, were totally convinced that their harasser would ultimately receive special protection from the institution’s general manager owing to the personal ties they enjoy, referring to an attempt of one of the victims to blow the whistle. The harasser escaped being punished by submitting his resignation, and thus all hassle came to an end, which confirms the hypothesis he had been granted protection by a higher authority, allowing him to escape accountability.
Deficient laws
Sumaya Is’haq, executive committee member of the Sudanese Women’s Association, also a practicing lawyer, emphasized the need for deterring laws whereby sexual harassment will be clearly identified, and defined in a manner consistent with international conventions. She pointed out to the stigma attached to women who relate exposure to sexual harassment or blackmail, saying “In such cases, woman are likely to be subject to violation twice.. one when they got trapped in an act of harassment, then again when they are being labelled as disrespectful for daring to share the harassing incident, the touch or even the assault.” Is’haq pinpointed difficulties of women’s access to justice systems, explaining, “when a woman is subjected to sexual harassment, she will have to look for concerned authorities where she can report the case; this will incur greater hardships, especially the burden of proof,” noting that lack of female officials working in the field of investigations renders the situation even worse. Is’haq also notes that “… woman tend to speak to other women less shyly,“ explaining that embarrassment associated with detailing an act of harassment fades out as soon as the victim speaks to a woman like herself, and is able to narrate the incident in all its aspects. She stressed the importance of amending the criminal law to include barefaced identification of all forms of harassment. Concerning female jurnos being exposed to snips and intimidations by superiors at work, she stressed that one important matter should be well taken into consideration, which is, any likely consent on a women’s part must be seen as a flaw on the part of the intimidator, not the woman. For the person who commits harassment must be certain that from then on he would always be able to manipulate that young woman; whether through direct bargaining, enticement with promotions or complete denial of other job privileges.
The Sudanese Penal Code of 1991 does not stipulate any articles in relation to harassment as an offence. The well-known jurist, Nabil Adeeb, finds this surprising, especially as it was enacted at a time when the ruling clique was claiming to preserve societal values. Reluctance to incorporate in laws articles against sexual harassment is not a sheer Sudanese issue, according to Adeeb, who noted that even US laws had had the tendency, since 1976, to consider sexual harassment as a form of unlawful sexual discrimination; however, the US supreme court had not decided on this issue until 1986. Protection at work against this type of sexual discrimination is extremely important, according to Adeeb, who believes sexual harassment ranges from telling jokes in the workplace that contain obscene wordings, to granting privileges in exchange for accepting behavior of a sexual nature. He asserted that all these practices, as a rule, take place there. Adeeb believes such attitude falls within employers’ direct responsibility, even if they were not part of it.
Coming out of Isolation
Nahid M. Al Hassan, a renowned psychiatrist, believes that one of the assertive measures that can be afforded to harassment survivors is through solidarity among women; which she sees as a societal deterrent force, adding that, “They who are not deterred by shame shall definitely be deterred by fear.“ Girls, she thinks, speaking out about being harassed by a specific person will impose societal isolation on them. Al Hassan said that publicly discussing harassment not only renders men shameful, but also restricts their freedoms; emphasizing that, generally speaking, men in oriental societies have not yet learned to exercise any kind of moral control over their behavior. She added, “Society has granted men all free spaces they need, yet all their perceptions of controlling public life will be through withdrawal of the other party, women, from the scene by not going out.”
Law remains the sole decisive solution to mitigate and stop such phenomena according to dr. Nahid, who asserted that, should laws be enacted, this will bring a paradigm shift in society as a whole, where fear of restrictive legislations will force men to lower their sharp looks, direct them to chastity and make them hold themselves accountable. Concluding her speech to Al Taghyeer, dr. Nahid confirmed that: “… men will be much more careful with their words and actions lest they be coined as harassers.”
