Protection of the Rights of Sri Lankan Women from Street Harassment

Abstract

Street harassment is a form of discrimination against women which directly affects women's rights and dignity. When women experience verbal or physical harassment done by unknown men in public streets it results in limiting their freedom of movement. It further amounts in physical, emotional, sexual violations of their rights. The prevailing patriarchal society has produced men's attitude of supremacy and ultimately women have become the victims of such gender stereotypes. Therefore, it is questionable whether there are adequate laws in Sri Lanka to overcome the issue of street harassment in order to safeguard women's rights. The main objective of this paper is to critically evaluate the existing legal framework to address the issue of street harassment and to explore whether such laws are adequate and practically implemented in Sri Lanka. The secondary objective is to examine whether the laws alone can remedy the issue of street harassment. The author seeks to assess both quantitative and secondary data. A questionnaire will be administered to gather quantitative data and an age category of 15 - 55 years of females will be taken as the sample for this research. Desk research entails the legal standards with special reference to the penal code of Sri Lanka and United Nations convention on elimination all forms of discrimination against women (CEDAW). Today, in the contemporary society women have identified the importance of their rights to be treated without discrimination and they fight to win their rights. Therefore, a strict legal framework for the practical implementation of laws will change the mindset of street harassers and eventually, the safety of Sri Lankan women can be guaranteed and this will change the existing situation.