A COMMUNITY campaign has called for urgent improvement to public transport, including better lighting and increased police presence, amid growing concern over the harassment of female commuters.
The call follows the Safe Commutes public art event held recently at the Rezende rank in Harare. The campaign was organised by Dura Organisation and Loud Silence, and was triggered by the rape of a 13-year-old girl at the terminus in July.
The event provided a safe space for people to speak openly about their experiences. The stories shared revealed that for many women and girls, feeling unsafe has become a normal part of travelling to work or school.
Advertisements
“We walk in fear everyday. Even when you are just trying to get home, you have to be alert because anything can happen in seconds,” one woman said.
A young commuter explained how widespread the problem is.
“Harassment has become normalised. Men think it’s a joke, but for us it’s trauma we carry everyday,” she said.
These challenges are not unique to Zimbabwe. According to UN Women, about 70% of women globally experience violence or harassment in public spaces. A study carried out by the International Association of Public Transport found that more than 80% of women in some major cities have faced harassment on buses or trains.
The campaign also found that abuse does not stop at the bus stop, with many women facing bullying and threats online through social media and messaging platforms.
Even workers at transport hubs say they feel unsafe and powerless to intervene. A vendor who has worked at the Rezende rank for years said the environment had become increasingly dangerous.
People who work at the rank also feel unsafe and unable to help.
Another vendor who works at the Rezende rank came up a list of demands for local authorities and transport companies.
The demands include the installation of better lighting and designing safer pathways at ranks and bus stops, having better police presence, especially during busy and late-night hours.
They are calling for trusted systems for women to report harassment without fear, teaching of people who work at transport hubs how to safely help and support victims and use public art and community events to keep talking about the problem.
“We need more lighting, more police presence and more campaigns like this. People must know it’s not okay to violate women,” one woman said.
Organisers said women should not accept fear as a normal part of a bus journey and called on communities and authorities to work together to make public transport safe for everyone. -nwsda
