This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
131156Z Sep 04
UNCLAS HARARE 001535
SIPDIS
AF/PD FOR CDALTON, IIP /G AF FOR EYORK
E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: OIIP KPAO ZI
SUBJECT: HIGHLIGHTS / RESULTS REPORT: PAS HARARE SPONSORS
ZIMBABWE'S FIRST EVER NATIONAL CONFERENCE ON SEXUAL
HARASSMENT
1. Description of Activity:
From August 26-September 2, 2004, Dr. Linda Greene,
former Vice Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-
Madison interacted with a variety of stakeholders regarding
Sexual Harassment Laws and Policies in Zimbabwe. In
addition to delivering the keynote address at Zimbabwe's
first ever National Conference on Sexual Harassment,
sponsored by a grant from PAS, Dr. Greene traveled
throughout Zimbabwe addressing audiences about various
aspects of sexual harassment policies and laws.
2. Date: August 25-September 2, 2004
3. MPP Themes and Audience:
Theme: Democracy and Human Rights
Audience: Through this event, PAS Harare reached diverse
audiences ranging from local deans of students, proctors,
wardens, professors, student leaders from the country's
major institutions of higher learning, lawyers from the law
society, justices from the Labor and Supreme Courts of
Zimbabwe, representatives from the local NGO community and a
member of parliament.
4. Justification and Objectives:
In order to support civil society, strengthen the economy,
and reduce the brain drain, the full participation of all
Zimbabweans in the life of the community, including women,
is essential. Many Zimbabweans do not have a clear
understanding of the legal definition of sexual harassment
or approaches to addressing the problem. Increasing
awareness of sexual harassment is essential to developing
and implementing effective sexual harassment policies.
During both the weekend sexual harassment conference and the
follow up programs, it was very clear that most of the local
universities did not have specific sexual harassment
policies in place for both students and staff members. In
some instances, institutions used codes of conduct from the
country's sexual offences and the labor acts, which were
ambiguous and obscure in their definitions of sexual
harassment. In most cases students were apparently not
forthcoming regarding reporting sexual harassment for fear
of victimization. Nonetheless, sexual harassment problems
involving lecturers and students were said to be prevalent
in some universities, yet universities lacked support
systems for sexual harassment.
5. Results/Impact:
Dr. Greene met with a total of 150 selected participants,
including the leaders of 7 universities, members of
parliament, labor and supreme court justices, NGO's, and
other major stakeholders. Two of Zimbabwe's major
universities drafted Sexual Harassment policies as a result
of Dr. Greene's visit. Several other universities pledged
to make existing policies more transparent and accessible to
students. The event provided an opportunity to further the
MPP goal of Democracy and Human Rights by encouraging the
full participation of women in civil society.
6. Quality of USG Support: Excellent. We commend, once
again, the excellent support from IIP's Eboni York and Inga
McMichael.
DELL