With a rise in stories related to on-campus harassment, the Salman Sufi Foundation has decided to take action.
The organisation, that is known for its previous initiative Women on Wheels, has launched an independent platform where students and faculty members can submit their complaints and report any harassment they face on campus grounds.
BREAKING:
In light of harassment incidents at educational institutions in #Pakistan, I have launched Pakistan’s first #SafeCampus initiative.
Students/Faculty can email at SafeCampusPk@salmansufifoundation.org and they will receive a secure link to submit their complaints 1/4 pic.twitter.com/Rfpc3onAuA— Salman Sufi (@SalmanSufi7) December 28, 2019
According to Salman Sufi, “The purpose of this initiative is two-pronged: firstly, to provide students/faculty a safe platform to share incidents that the campus administration hasn’t helped them with. We will connect vulnerable students, survivors and witnesses with lawyers/psychologists/LEA.”
“Secondly, to work with the administration of respective universities to solidify their anti-harassment protocols. If the university fails to comply with the agreed upon protocols related to harassment then they will be marked as ‘unsafe’. This will ensure that students are safe and secure while studying. A place of fear cannot be a place of education.”
He added in a tweet, “We will be contacting all educational institutions and offer a review of their anti-harassment protocols and help them make them more robust. For this, we will also need volunteers from campuses across Pakistan. If you are interested, please get in touch.”
Sufi also shared how one can report harassment on the platform.
IMPORTANT: Harassment & assault students face on campus while pursuing education is unacceptable.
We have launched #SafeCampus initiative to put an end to it.
Campuses with weak protocols to fight harassment will be marked #UnSafeCampus
Here’s how to report & get help pic.twitter.com/SKUulp0IWD
— Salman Sufi (@SalmanSufi7) December 29, 2019
The Salman Sufi Foundation is also working on launching their previous initiative Women on Wheels – which empowers women by improving their access to mobility – in Peshawar in 2020.