• Restores headmistress’ penalty for negligence in protecting female teachers• Orders strict anti-harassment mechanisms, law enforcement
ISLAMABAD: The Supreme Court on Friday restored a severe penalty imposed on a government school headmistress for gross negligence in failing to prevent the sexual harassment of female teachers under her supervision.
A two-judge SC bench, headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar and comprising Justice Musarrat Hilali, also issued wide-ranging guidelines to all educational institutions, requiring strict enforcement of workplace harassment laws.
In a 12-page judgement authored by Justice Mazhar, the court observed that the sexual harassment of female teachers by male colleagues in any educational institution was “a grave transgression, illegal behaviour and a violation of law, ethics, workplace dignity and self-respect”.
The judgement explained that unsolicited comments, remarks, jokes or messages of a sexual nature, catcalling and other inappropriate behaviour, pressure for illicit favours in exchange for job benefits, attempts at unsolicited physical contact, and the creation of a hostile or unsafe work environment not only violate a person’s dignity and safety but also undermine the environment of the entire institution. Such conduct, it said, creates an insecure workplace for female teachers and hampers their ability to impart education effectively with proper application of mind and professional skills.
