Myths and facts about sexual harassment

 Myth 1: Women enjoy eve-teasing/sexual harassment to them

 Fact: Sexual harassment and Eve teasing are humiliating, intimidating, painful and frightening and no women likes it.

 Myth 2: Eve-teasing is harmless and problem free flirtation. Women who object have no sense of humor or the under standing of it.

 Fact: Behavior that is unwelcome and unwarranted cannot be considered harmless or humour. Sexual harassment is clearly defined by its impact on the woman rather than the intention of the perpetrator.

 Myth 3: Women ask for sexual harassment. Only women who are provocatively/attractively dressed are sexually harassed.

Fact: This is the classic and usual way of shifting blame from the harasser to the victim. Women have the authority and right to act, dress and move around freely without the threat of attack or harassment. The most popular slogan of the women’s rights movement of the past three decades has been:| However/whatever we dress, wherever we go ‘Yes’ means ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ means ‘No’.

 Myth 4: Women who say ‘no’ actually mean ‘yes’.

 Fact: This is a common myth and excuse used by men to justify sexual aggression and one-sided sexual advances.

Myth 5: Sexual harassment is not really an issue. It doesn’t hurt anyone.

 Fact: Persons subjected to sexual harassment by and large experience a wide range of physical and psychological ailments. There are financial consequences for the victim’s physical and mental wellbeing, and the organization’s productivity, efficiency and work ethic ,etc.

 Myth 6: Sexual harassment is ‘natural’ and involuntary male behavior. Man is the hunter and woman the prey.

Fact: Men are not born knowing how to sexually harass others. It’s learned out of experience within the context of a sexist and/or patriarchal environment that perpetuates control over women’s sexuality, fertility.

 Myth 7: Women mostly keep quiet. That means they like it.

 Fact: Women keep quiet to avoid the stigma being attached and retaliation from the harasser. Women are afraid that they will be accused of provoking it, of being victimized, of being called not true and made the subject of gossip all around.

 Myth 8: If women go to places where they are not welcome, they should expect sexual harassment.

Fact: Discriminatory behavior and abuse is unlawful and not acceptable. Women have equal access to all work related facilities. A safe and conducive workplace is a woman’s legal right.

Hence please be understood that all the myth about sexual harassment of women or suitably carved to suit the male dominance in the society and such behavior is totally not acceptable and it will be dealt with the PoSH Act 2013 in the most appropriate way and women needs to raise their morale and voice such occurrences and have the mind and will to behave with equal rights.