Call for action for catcalling to be challenged

A safety charity is calling for catcalling to be included in new street harassment legislation.

SafetyNet Guernsey said it wanted to see all "belittling" and "unacceptable" behaviour outlawed.

Poppy Murray, the organisation's chair, said she had heard many "really shocking comments" about incidents which showed that there was a "massive misunderstanding" about such behaviour.

She said people should "really educate" themselves "as a starting point".

She said some people had suggested victims of catcalling should be speaking up, "placing the blame on them", or that they should take it as a compliment.

She said: "All of those things show a massive misunderstanding of sexual harassment, violence against women and girls [VAWG] and the impact that it can have on women and girls - and on anyone - when this happens to them.

"I think that, as an island, we're not particularly well educated about these issues and I think that needs to change."

She urged people to "talk to the people in your lives" about the issue.

She said: "It is extremely likely that most of us will have someone in our life, perhaps someone extremely close to us, that has been the victim of some kind of inappropriate behaviour and never voiced that."

She also called on people to challenge behaviour.

She said: "If you see men behaving inappropriately, or they're making inappropriate comments, in a chat or in person, you can be the person that takes the first step to say that's not appropriate."

The Committee for Home Affairs said victims could have better legal protection soon and new specific offences would include spiking, stalking, suffocation or strangulation, female genital mutilation and sexual harassment in a public place.

The proposals come after the creation of a domestic abuse and sexual violence strategy and a new domestic abuse law.

Rob Prow, President of the Committee for Home Affairs, said leaders were also looking at street harassment issues.

Prow said: "Everyone has the right to walk through public places and feel safe. Where they do not, they should be empowered and encouraged to report their concerns to the police."

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