Syed Shemul Parvez :
Harassment of female passengers is increasing day by day in passenger buses, as very few protest. Sometimes they are targetted by transport workers and sometimes by male passengers.
Although various initiatives have been taken to ensure their safe movement, most of those have not been effective. BRAC’s research says that about 94 percent of women are victims of sexual harassment in passenger buses.
The rush of male passengers and the reluctance of the bus drivers and the conductors has made it hard for women to board into the bus as office time of the both begins ogether. As a result, in order to reach the destination on time, female have to compete with men regularly.
Most of the women have a negative experience in the bus journey when they are self-forced to do so. They said there are found no seats for women to be seated in the bus despite having some reserved seats for them.
Male passengers generally occupied these seats. Though at least nine seats in each town service are kept reserved fin each bus or women, children and the disabled under direction of the Supreme Cour, most of the time that is possessed by the male passengers.
The driver-helper does not take care of this. Not only that, female passengers have to be harassed by many helpers while getting into on the bus.
According to BRAC’s research, about 94 percent of women in the country are victims of sexual harassment on public transport.
In May this year, a garment worker (woman) was gang-raped on a moving bus in Ashulia.
Earlier in 2017, a woman was gang-raped and killed in a running bus in Tangail. Such incidents almost happen every day in the transport. Human rights activists say a change in the mentality of men is necessary to improve the situation.
Human rights activist Khushi Kabir said that the number of transports for women should be increased. Besides, the mentality of the people should be corrected.
In 2018, Dolanchampa bus service was launched in the capital for the safe movement of women. At present only one bus survives of that service. Of the 22 BRTCs buses, only is in operation, becaue the female pssengers show negligence to the female bus..
According to an earlier research, 35 per cent respondents traveling by buses said they faced sexual harassment from males belonging to the age group of 19-35 years. Around 59 per cent respondents faced such harassment from the males who are 26-40 years old. The forms of sexual harassment experienced by the respondents include deliberate touching of chest and other parts of the body, pinching, standing too close to the victim and pushing, touching of hair of the victims, putting hand on their shoulder, touching private parts of the victims.
In response to the question ‘What do women do when they are victim of such harassments?’ 81 per cent women said they have kept silent while 79 per cent said they moved away from the place of harassment.
The research also observes that the present education system in which male and female children attend institutions separately restricts the scope for learning gender equality lessons as well as building the attitude and habit of treating both the sexes equally and with respect. To help children learn such behavior need adequate training and counseling of teachers and counselors, it also observes.
