LAHORE: A consultation on the Sexual Harassment at the Workplace Act came up with some recommendations while discussing the roadblocks to implementation of this law. The event was organised at a local hotel by the Asma Jahangir Legal Aid Cell and the participants were unanimous in their opinion that the title of the act should be amended to `the protection against sexual harassment` instead of limiting instances to the `workplace` only, the burden of proof should explicitly be civil, the criteria for appointing ombudsperson for the sexual harassment should be the same in all provinces and the person holding the office shouldhave alegalbackground.

`No woman is safe, no matter which sector she is working in even if she is working from home,said keynote speaker Kashmala Tariq, the federal ombudsperson for sexual harassment.

Kashmala said there should be no deadline for the filing of a complaint because sometimes a victim faced emotional trauma and might take a long time before opening up.

Lawyer Sabahat Rizvi said the ombudsperson powers should be stretched to include the judges as the court itself was a workplace and women often faced sexual harassment by the senior members of the judiciary.

Harris Azmat advocate observed that the definition of harassment needed a definition.

Fatima Khan of the Strategic Reforms Unit (SMU) said amendments must be made to the law to make the things clear.

Ms Kashmala added that the law must embrace the recently adopted Transpersons (Protection of Rights) Act, and allow the transgen-der person to also file complaints.

The definition of laws where only man and woman are mentioned, instead of `persons,` should be extended to address and include transgenderpersonsinit.

The federal ombudsperson also stressed the need to change perception towards the victims and complainants.

In Punjab, 134 cases reached the ombudsperson during the last five years and office received 98 complaints from 2014 to 2017. Data by Punjab Commission on Status of Women (PCSW) and the ombudsperson`s office states that 38pc of these cases were withdrawn, 43pc accused received punishment and the suspects in 18pc cases were exonerated.

It was also specified in the consultation that while the civil society organisations thought that this law should not be amended more focus should be on fully implementing it the lawyer communitythought it better to be implemented after being amended.

It was also explained by the lawyers present the defamation law in Pakistan was so strong that any complaint against anyone could invoke a defamation suit and this itself a big issue.

`This is why the `MeToo` movement has not caught on here, because the courts here can give a gagging order, which means the petitioner may never even mention her case again,` said Harris advocate.

`In most other countries, there are limits to accusations of defamation.

Leading members of the government and civil society also participated in the discussion, Fauzia Waqar, Anis Haroon, MPAs Bushra Anjum Butt, Uzma Kardar and Sadia Sohail also recommended that there should be sexualharassment committees in the National Assembly.