HIGHER Education and Training Minister Dr Naledi Pandor has appointed a Ministerial Task Team to advise on matters relating to sexual harassment and gender-based violence (GBV) in public universities in South Africa.
This follows an open letter written by a group of academics to the Minister in March 2019 highlighting issues of GBV, including sexual harassment.
Among the issues raised by academics were lecturers, especially male lecturers, who asked for sexual favours from students for marks.
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According to the academics, young female academics also get harassed by senior leadership in universities in exchange for job security.
In a letter, the academics called on the Department of Higher Education and Training to ensure that steps are implemented to help prevent sexual harassment and sexual violence in university spaces.
“The task team will be requested to identify areas of good practice in reporting and managing gender-based harm and support mechanisms that could be replicated in the sector, and identify policy weaknesses across institutions that may be contributing to failures of institutions to adequately manage sexual harassment and gender-based violence,” she said.
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The nine-member team includes Lisa Vetten, Dr Babalwa Magoqwana, Professor Jackie Dugard, Professor Pumla Gqola, Dr Robert Morrell, Jerome September, Professor Malehoko Tshoaedi, Corinne Knowles, and a Student Representative nominated by the South African Union of Students (SAUS).
The task team is appointed for a period of 12 months, starting in June 2019.
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