Egyptian liberal party supports anti-harrasment law proposal

Egypt women protesting in Cairo Egypt’s liberal Free Egyptians Party (FEP) has said it supports calls by women’s rights organisations and NGOs for anti-harassment laws, an Egyptian online news website reported on Monday. The party said it stands against “the phenomenon of sexual harassment” and called for a law criminalising the act, Egypt’s Bikya Masr news website reported.
According to the report, the party condemned in a statement the “shameful stance of the female parliamentary members of the Freedom and Justice Party (FJP), who stand against a woman’s right to defend herself and refuse to condemn men who assault women and only blame society and the woman, who is the victim.”
Two-thirds of Egyptian women experience sexual harassment on a daily basis, according to a 2008 study published by the Egyptian Centre for Women’s Rights.
FEP member Mina Mounir was quoted as saying that the party supported women in their fight against sexual harassment, “which became widespread in Egyptian society and must be combatted, through community outreach, and encouraging citizens to be positive and not allow harassment of girls in the street, or public transportation”.
On Saturday, the FEP took part in a protest organised by women’s rights organisations in central Cairo against sexual harassment
Numerous obstacles stood in the way of legislation to penalise men who commited the act before the January 25 popular uprising that ousted former president Hosni Mubarak.in Area C and expects such investment to be protected for future use," the statement said.