Worawan Tinala was sexually harassed on a crowded Skytrain five years ago. The experience has since left a deep mark as if it just happened yesterday.
Two stations into her trip, she noticed a big slash on her skirt, which she assumed was cut by a knife. She didn't realise when it occurred. Fellow passengers stepped in and helped her patch up the skirt. Worawan later informed the security guard about the incident, but was faced with disappointment.
"The guard said they had no CCTV on the train," said the now 32-year-old employee. "There was no evidence. And I couldn't do much more than just accept it and went home."
That incident affected Worawan's lifestyle drastically. She changed her make-up, hairstyle and wardrobe, even asking her office if she could change her working hours. She also took up boxing lessons.
"I felt very unsafe. And I ended up doing everything to make sure I didn't have to be in that situation ever again," she said.
The issue of sexual harassment and assaults are now under public scrutiny more so than ever due to the explosive sets of allegations in Hollywood. The rallying cry and hashtag #metoo has taken over the world, with many people, famous or otherwise, sharing their horrible experiences online to raise awareness of the issue.
Thailand has not seen a Harvey Weinstein-like scandal, but sexual harassment occurs every day to a large number of women, especially on public transport.
Last month, during the Safe Cities for Women campaign launch held at Bangkok Art and Culture Centre, Worawan and several other victims shared their experiences with the public. The event saw representatives from civil organisations and the public transport system coming together to raise awareness of the prevalence of sexual harassment against women, and what can be done to improve the situation.
WHO? HOW? WHERE?
Survey results as gathered by researchers at the Faculty of Public Health, Thammasat University, showed that 45% of women have faced sexual harassment while commuting on public transport. In comparison, 37.5% of LGBTI people and 15.4% of men said they were victims.
The survey also found that the most common type of harassment -- amounting to 18.8% of all cases -- is a rude gaze directed at a woman's cleavage or up her skirt. Cornering and touching a person's body follows at 15.4%. Other behaviours include cat calls, dirty talk, all the way to the perpetrator using his genitals to rub up against the victim's body.
The most common place for harassment to occur is on a bus, which makes up 50% of all sexual harassment cases found on public transport. Surprisingly, coming in second is the motorcycle taxi, making up 11.4% of the cases. It was followed by taxis, vans and the Skytrain which ranked closely with one another.
MAKE YOUR MOVE
Maneesh Pradhan, country director for Action Aid, an international NGO working against worldwide injustice, suggested at the Safe Cities campaign launch that perpetrators often go undetected and unpunished due to the victims and the public keeping silent when things happen, thus making some people feel they can get away with it.
"Keeping quiet only encourages such behaviour," insisted Pradhan. "Whether you're being harassed or you're a passer-by, you can intervene to stop it."
It was found that 25% of those who were subjected to harassment responded by standing still, or trying to walk away. But only 14.6% decided to inform the transport staff or security guards.
Only 28% of people decided to intervene when they witnessed harassment. Many feel it's not their problem, while others are unsure how to step in or would rather not get involved.
The Safe Cities for Women campaign was thus born, encouraging everyone to "butt in" and intervene when injustice and harassment plays out in front of them. The hashtag #buttin was also initiated at the event to invite everyone to take a stand for fellow passengers when needed.
Varaporn Chamsanit, from the Women Wellbeing programme, suggested that the public can intervene by simply raising their voices and asking aloud about what the person is doing.
"This way, it makes them realise that someone is watching and is not going to let this behaviour slide. You can use your phone to record the act as evidence too," said Varaporn.
Or, if you're on a bus, inform the bus conductor. Yong Chimplee, a conductor working for the Bangkok Mass Transit Authority (BMTA), said the conductors are trained to handle sexual harassment and they have full authority to step in to break up any inappropriate behaviour.
"We want people to be confident that they will be safe riding with us. Tell us anytime. And if you want to take it to the police, we can help you with that as well," Yong said.
For a victim, getting support from fellow passengers actually means a lot, stated Worawan.
"Even just a small bit of help is crucial in helping the victim to heal from such a bad experience," said Worawan. "Now, people mostly turn their face down to their phone. Do try looking up once in a while and see what the people surrounding you are doing. Butt in, if you see anything. You never know when it can really save someone."
CLOTHES DON'T MATTER
Whenever a case of sexual harassment arises, one of the first things anybody asks is what the victim was wearing.
For Worawan, it was a maxi dress.
"I would say I dressed quite conservatively that day," she said. "I didn't even have make-up on. It shouldn't have drawn any attention but it did. What could then guarantee that, had I dressed otherwise, I wouldn't be faced with harassment anyway?"
Worawan's sentiment echoed the powerful What Were You Wearing? art installation held earlier this year at the University of Kansas to debunk the myth surrounding sexual violence and its correlation to the victim's wardrobe.
Replicas of the victim's clothes worn during the assault were on display -- and these included a bikini, a sundress, cargo shorts, jeans and more. It goes to show that the victim's clothes really have nothing to do with -- and are not what instigate -- sexual harassment.
"We shouldn't have to question what the victim was wearing or doing," said Varaporn, who agrees that many people tend to shift the blame from the perpetrator to the people being assaulted.
"What we should focus on instead is that public transport should be a safe space for everyone," she said. "If we can start from that, we'll look into other means and solutions to prevent the incident instead of telling the victim how they should dress, or what time they should travel in this city."
BEYOND PEOPLE POWER
While the Safe Cities campaign did focus heavily on the power of the public, representatives from civil organisations argued this is just the entry point they're aiming for. On a bigger scale, the best organisation to "butt in" is actually the government that can lay down policy and enforce the law to discourage any inappropriate behaviour.
Jaree Srisawat, a representative from the Women and Men Progressive Movement Foundation, suggested that the law will need to define clearly what constitutes sexual harassment and lay out the penalty separately for intimidating gazes, threatening words and improper touching. There also has to be a procedure in place for people to report cases to the authority efficiently.
"We also need more cameras -- in all public places, and to make sure they actually work, too," Jaree added.
At the event, an audience member raised a point about introducing a female-only bus, though the panel quite disagreed with the idea.
Yong said that the BMTA did try running a women-only bus before. However, it failed as many women were also accompanied by their boyfriends or partners when they needed to board the bus. Denying service and asking the accompanying men to get on a separate ride was just not practical.
The panel agreed that it will take commuters, the state and private institutions to realise the importance of the cause and help make sure that public transport can be a safe space for all -- not just for any specific gender, route or time travelled.
