London transport harassment under reported
Photo: Flickr/Qsimple
A new poll has revealed that many women are being harassed on London’s transport network and not reporting it
The poll, released by the Thomson Reuters Foundation in partnership with YouGov, found that 32 per cent of women who use the transport network in London have been verbally harassed on public transport.
Nearly 20 per cent of those surveyed reported having been the victims of direct physical abuse, while 75 per cent said they feared that no one would intervene in the event of an attack.
Part of a study of safety on transport systems in the world’s most populous cities, the YouGov poll ranked London’s transport system below those of New York, Beijing and Tokyo.
“What was really surprising for London was that people feel that if they were attacked, nobody would move, more or less, [and] most of the people would look the other way.”
Monique Villa, CEO of Thomson Reuters Foundation, said in a BBC interview. “I thought it was shocking.”
As 45 per cent of women included in the poll expressed support for the idea of women-only carriages on the London Underground, this measure may at first seem to offer a quick-fix solution.
However some have pointed out that this is not the right approach.
“I don’t think at all that women-only carriages is the solution – I think it’s a step back, it seems to accept that the problem is inevitable, that men will harass women and that all we can do is contain them,” argued Laura Bates in an interview with the BBC.
“If you’re going to contain anybody it should be the perpetrators but much more importantly we should be tackling the problem at its root, sending the message that this behaviour is unacceptable in any circumstances.”
Transport for London have disagreed with the poll findings, arguing that crime on the London transport network is at its lowest ever level.
But others have pointed out that this simply reflects the problem of under reporting.
“The response from Transport for London is perhaps showing there’s a disconnect between reported crime and harassment as women are feeling it, so I’d really encourage people to come forward and report,” said Rachel Griffin, Director of the Suzy Lamplugh Trust, in an interview with the Standard.
“I’d also call on colleagues at Transport for London to make sure that their people are properly trained so that we know that there’ll be a proper and appropriate response if somebody does report.” She added.
The poll figures echo the findings of a Transport for London survey conducted last year which found that 15 per cent of women and girls had experienced unwanted sexual behaviour on London’s transport network, with 90 per cent of those saying they had not reported it.
‘Women tend not to report the majority of incidents, sometimes amid concerns that they [will] not be taken seriously,’ explain Monique Villa and Laura Bates, founder of the Everyday Sexism Project, in the New Statesman.
However, we have tried and tested evidence that reporting can be improved through public campaigning.
For example, in September 2013 the British transport Police, the City of London Police, the Metropolitan Police and Transport for London launched Project Guardian to boost levels of reporting for sexual offences.
Project Guardian was supported by Hollaback, the Everyday Sexism Project and the End Violence Against Women coalition and it saw 2000 officers receive dedicated training as well as 120 officers deployed to conduct daily patrols of the transport network.
Since it was launched, Project Guardian has seen a 20 per cent increase in the reporting of sexual offences, plus a 32 per cent increase in the number of cases leading to perpetrators being charged or summoned.
Building on this success, it seems that tackling the issue has to begin with encouraging more women to report their experiences, which of course means assuring them that they will be taken seriously.
The problem, as Bryony Beyon, a campaigner at Hollaback Girl highlights, is that a “culture of silence” currently exists around public harassment.
In an attempt to alleviate fears, Assistant Chief Constable of the British Transport Police, Mark Newton, pointed out that about fifty per cent of harassment reports lead to a conviction, and that if an offence occurs on the transport network, there is very likely to be a CCTV image of the offender.
“What we need are people to take the step forward and feel confident in us that we’re really going to take it seriously.” He said.
The YouGov poll may go some way towards addressing the problem of under reporting, but only by making it safe, non-judgemental and easy for women to report offences will there be any progress towards making London’s public transport network safer for the majority of its users.
The British Transport Police advise anyone experiencing incidents of a sexual nature to call them on 0800 40 50 40 or text 61016.
For incidents that take place away from the transport system, reports can be made via the number 101. In an emergency, women should always dial 999.
I am a mixed race woman experiencing daily harassment in London. The problem occurs more often on the streets and in those cash & carry stores from male staff who expose women with personal questions, starring and talking of us in their own language to colleagues, lets start accepting this mockery going beyond TFL. The police do nothing unless you were attacked. Society needs compulsory adult classes for all teaching respect, the law does not protect us.