Female Harassment in Public Transport

While I was traveling through the bus to reach my destination, I felt the pain of traveling in public transport. Being the first exposure the journey of 15minutes was such a torture that it felt like a journey of 15hours or more. It started with stepping into the female compartment that was flooded with females cum males. I got surprised with the fact that in spite for women there are just 20 % seats in the buses & rest of the seats are in entitled gent’s area, still male gentry found in female compartment and using the same door for entry and exit. The conductor was getting fare from the female passenger by poking its hand and making space for the collection of money. There was not even the distance of centimeters between male & female passengers. And asking them to maintain distance is allowing them to make fun of you. The teasing gestures of driver, conductor & other male community made this a painful journey. The types of songs that were played in the bus made it more uncomfortable to even stand there. In addition to cheap songs the names that driver & conductor was using to address females, their starring & other cheap acts by male gentry made this is miserable journey.

On the other hand, the technology of advancement has benefited the world in multiple ways. It’s not regarding advance system or underdeveloped masses, but it’s about the awareness people have concerning the social issues. The factor percentage of harassment is reaching up to more than maximum limits around the globe. The most talked about issue these days is women empowerment & on the contrary women harassment. Talking about harassment, in Pakistanis commonly faced by most of the females in public transport is a disgraceful act, be it a rural or an urban area.

The reason for increase in female harassment is not only lack of education but also the mindset and our culture i-e lack of acceptance of female’s behavior to go out of their homes for work or to run errands of daily life. The concerning matter is that there is no accountability & no policies set up for the guilty, even if there are evidences.

Harassment is not only physical, but it is also purely confronting in relation to non-physical acts. Harassment is not only top stare for long to please your desires or to harm women abusively. Other than this the abusive language used for females by the illiterate or ill-mannered people is also a type of harassment.

Girls, from childhood to teens and from teens to being adults, the events of harassing females are very common. Due to lawlessness & non immediate reporting behavior the criminal activities are easily escaped from charge scenario & guilty picture.

From locals to elite the harassment of females is always over looked & barely managed safely. The idea is not to pin point the framed faces because the change is required from very low levels that is possible by increasing awareness & spreading education. Until the humanity of every class, sect & religion raise their dignity, this harassment bug will exist as a leech & as a result society will be suffer by the in fear, where females with have negative personalities with loss of their integrity & confidence.

People need to raise their standard of thinking whether it’s their relative or any other person from the society. That can only be done with education & awareness that will ultimately change the behavior & attitude of people towards women. Male gentry should not be allowed to enter in the female compartment even if it has vacant seats. Public awareness sessions should be done for females at mass and community level to raise their voice for their rights & get the harassment events registered as law has provision of it. Government need to take initiative to make implementation of act & rules for harassment & punishment to guilty so that this culture of ruling over females should be stopped. Further government and other concerned authoritiesshould work in hand to hand to make this transport facility a female friendly transport.