Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Two days after gala International Women’s Day events concluded, a dark day dawned in Sri Lanka when a female doctor was allegedly sexually assaulted at the Anuradhapura Teaching Hospital on Monday (March 10). The incident was revealed by Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa in Parliament who raised concerns about the safety of females employed in the public service. 

The fact that a female doctor was threatened with a knife by an outsider before allegedly sexually assaulting her inside her duty room marks glaring loopholes that need to be addressed to ensure workplace safety for women. The incident sparked outrage among doctors’ unions that were quick to announce the launch of trade union action if the government fails to arrest the perpetrator within 24 hours. The suspect has been identified as an army deserter and was arrested in Galnewa on March 12. 

Following the incident many doctors took to social media, describing the hardships faced when posted to rural areas on transfers. Several of these doctors described how doctors’ quarters in rural areas are not up to standard. Many are isolated from the main hospital building and are usually deserted during evenings. An On Call doctor has to be present to attend to any emergencies and it is a daunting task for most female doctors. 

It was also a worrying sight to see many individuals continuing to objectify women and blaming the victim for arousing the perpetrator. On March 11, a 36-year old man was arrested for allegedly attempting to sexually assault a patient who had come to seek treatments at a psychiatric ward at the Tellipalai Mental Hospital, Jaffna. The suspect who had been employed through a private cleaning service had been taken into custody. On March 7, the Aralaganwila Police arrested a math teacher from a school in the Aralaganwila Education division in connection with the sexual assault of eight Grade 10 female students. 

At this point it is apt to recall how the wheels of justice turned slowly to mete out justice to a 23-year old garment factory worker who was raped, strangled and pushed down from the sixth floor of the Negombo General Hospital in November 2007. In 2014, the Negombo High Court found the accused, a medical officer of the hospital guilty of rape and murder. He was reportedly imprisoned for seven years and later released on bail. 

Incidents of rape, sexual abuse and murder should no longer be just headlines in newspapers or news items that would bring the highest views and ratings for media channels for the day. The unethical approach to sensationalism on certain mainstream media channels is indeed disgusting. Re-victimisation of victims on media has become so frequent that Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa issued a statement requesting media to respect the privacy of the victim. It is a sad state of affairs to have a minister remind the media about their ethics despite having a designated code of ethics, at least for print media journalists. According to the code of ethics journalists shouldn’t disclose the name of a victim of abuse, suicide, harassment or rape, shouldn’t disclose the method in which a murder, suicide, rape or sexual assault had occurred. 

In 2017, the #MeToo movement initiated by activist Tarana Burke went viral with its hashtag empowering more women to speak about the sexual assault and violence that they had experienced. This Movement significantly impacted workplace safety for women, prompting employers to strengthen anti-harassment policies, and creating a greater awareness of sexual misconduct. But in the post #MeToo era, a majority of Sri Lankan women, including professionals in environments once believed to be safe spaces for women to work are becoming increasingly vulnerable to incidents of rape, sexual assault and harassment. So, what is the guarantee from the new government to ensure safety of women?