According to a survey conducted by global research industry Ipsos for Women’s Day, sexual harassment is the biggest equality issue faced by women all across the world. Following close are issues like sexual violence, domestic abuse, physical violence and sexualisation of women and girls in media.
The global online study by Ipsos, titled “Global Misperceptions of Equality and the need to Press for Progress”, was conducted across 27 countries in a bid to highlight the level of concern people around the world have regarding issues of equality.
Issues in India
As per the release, Parijat Chakraborty, Executive Director of Ispos Public Affairs, believes that there is a huge gap between the number of incidents taking place versus those reported.
Clearly, Indian women confront the same equality issues like their global counterparts. With #metoo campaign and stringent laws being implemented and helpline numbers, women are now sort of united in speaking up, instead of suffering in silence. But there is still a huge gap between the number of incidents taking place versus those reported, due to the stigma attached to it.Parijat Chakraborty
Half of the respondents in the study believe that reports of sexual harassment are ignored. In India, one in two (52 percent) reiterated that belief.
Indians have also expressed concern over issues of sexual violence, domestic abuse and physical violence faced by women in their day to day lives. Among other issues that have emerged in this study are concerns about sexualisation of women and girls in media, access to education, workplace discrimination, work and domestic responsibilities balance, gender stereotyping, work done by women without pay and access to sanitary products, to name a few.
The study also highlights misperceptions of equality, such as overestimation of representation of women in business leadership by Indians. While the general perception is that there are 24 percent female MPs in Parliament, the real figure is an exact half of that: 12 percent.
As per the study, 74 percent Indians state that things would work better if more women held positions with responsibilities in government and companies.
Global Findings
According to the global findings of the study, while sexual harassment is seen as the top equality issue faced by women globally, in Britain it takes second place, with equal pay bagging the top spot.
Global findings of the study also point at a tendency among people to underestimate the prevalence of sexual harassment and how the world still thinks reports of sexual harassment are ignored, despite the high level of concern.
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