Sexual harassment: Why first-year students are most vulnerable

The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) says while universities have improved responses to sexual harassment cases, more still needs to be done to curb the scourge.

The commission conducted a study to explore students’ perspectives on the factors contributing to the persistence of sexual harassment in institutions of higher learning.

It also sought to evaluate the existing measures within institutions to address sexual harassment and to assess their effectiveness.

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The report, presented on Tuesday, was based on research conducted at Nelson Mandela University, North-West University and Sol Plaatje University.

‘First-year student vulnerable’

At Nelson Mandela University, an SRC leader who was interviewed shared that there is an abuse of power, particularly with new first-year students who require assistance at the beginning of the schooling year.

He said this has been a culture in the institution to the point where “when you get help from a comrade, you must give them something. When they offer and then you say no, and you tell your comrades —they’re like you’re done!”

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“An example was offered of a system where the student leadership (SRC) were given a dozen rooms per residence to administer and allocate themselves,” reads the report.

“This gave unfettered power to the student leadership, which they abused and engaged in quid pro quo transactions of rooms for sexual favours.”

Higher levels of gender-based violence perpetration were noted by students and staff who hold power.

“This should be avoided.”

Sexual harassment: North-West University

The university is experiencing staff shortages, where victims may approach the responsible office to report, and the office may be inundated with reports and unable to investigate within the reasonable time as expected.

“This lack of timeous investigation has implications for the university’s target wherein “the university’s target to resolve cases is two months and five days to conclude an investigation,” a GBV investigator was quoted in the report.

Staff shortages delay the timeline, and some victims lose interest in the case and fail to follow up.

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There was also a concern about the investigative skills of the investigation officers.

“This sometimes leads to weak evidence collected and weakens the case of the victim. In these instances, the alleged perpetrators’ defence team may have an advantage that is created by the inability of the university to present a strong and admissible case.”

During exam periods, teaching and learning are prioritised.

“One of the respondents mentions that if an investigation is concluded at the start or during the exams, they draw up the charges but do not serve the alleged perpetrator to allow them time to finish the examination,” reads the report.

“This could be viewed as providing a layer of protection for the alleged perpetrator, which is unfair as victims of sexual harassment are not spared during exam time or any other crucial time.”

Sol Plaatjie University

Participants at the university identified a few factors that are responsible for sexual harassment, including upbringing, social media, socialisation and peer pressure.

The wellness manager confirmed that some students presented with anger, and as a result, the centre did “a lot of workshops on anger management”.

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One of the interviewees, a wellness centre manager, highlighted societal-level violence as a factor responsible for sexual harassment. She said that “most of the students do not understand gentleness” because they were used to expressions of anger, shouting, and violence.

The view that substance use fuelled acts of sexual harassment was shared by other stakeholders, including the SRC.

Key findings on sexual harassment

The commission’s findings show that universities are beginning to take serious action against sexual harassment, however, questions remain about the unevenness of the existence of policies across the higher education landscape.

“A lack of a national policy on sexual harassment was pointed out as a limitation Nelson Mandela University reported and submitted extensive documents. The study found that the university had a number of interventions for prevention and response. Extensive engagements may have resulted in this.”

The study also found an under-representation of the experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community in the findings.

“This under-representation confirms an assertion that GBV is construed as a male-to-female in a cis-heterosexual encounter, and this is not necessarily true as it can be same-sex and woman-to-man violence.”

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The study further found that senior staff and executive members of the university community may not be construed as needing interventions in the same way as their junior and younger counterparts and students.

“However, sexual harassment transcends age, and staff may be found to be involved in some cases, either as perpetrators or victims.

“A well-captured statement that supports this and the participants’ thoughts here is from research conducted by the HSRC in 2014, where young women expressed that ‘we were victims of our protectors’.

“Such statements were repeated here across the three sites, suggesting that duty bearers, leaders, and managers may behave in ways that take advantage of vulnerable students.”

Data on sexual harassment

The study concluded that the data that institutions have on sexual harassment is an underestimate of the magnitude of the problem on campuses.

“There are several reasons for under-reporting and unofficial reporting. Lack of confidence in the system, not wanting to peruse litigation, not knowing where and how to report and seeing how those who reported have been ill-treated are among those cited here and in the literature.

“Sometimes, sexual harassment incidents are reported but not recorded. This constitutes unofficial reporting unless the complainant makes a formal complaint. Findings from this study point to the lack of disaggregated data that is routinely collected on sexual harassment by the universities. If there is such data, the data was not made available to the researchers.”