Sexual harassment laws in Thailand:
Effective or for show?
By Jon Fernquest[Introduction|Article]
[Reading Questions|Answers]
 |
The issue of sexual harassment hit Thai news last week with allegations of sexual harassment against a high ranking civil servant in the Thai government. (Photo of civil servant on right)
Sexual harassment laws are more notable in what they don't enforce, than what they do enforce, as Sanitsuda Ekachai, the author of today's commentary in the Bangkok Post makes perfectly clear.
Most victims of sexual harassment are not at high levels of government but among the poor and powerless segments of society.
When female workers in the informal sector, domestic workers, migrant workers from other countries, or hill tribe women with little or no rights are sexually harassed, it doesn't even make the news.
If the plight of these women doesn't even make the news, if it is largely invisible, how can it become an important issue?
Today's commentary sheds some light, if only momentary, on issues that truly deserve more attention and debate in the classroom.
For more articles on women in business and the workplace, please check out the archives.
For more articles on gender issues in Thailand see the archives.
Reading Questions
Here are some questions to guide your reading (See answers at end):1. Who is being accused of sexual harassment and what is his position in the government?
2. What is a "permament secretary" in a ministry?
3. What are the crimes he is being charged with?
4. Which of the crimes he is charged with is more difficult to prove? Why?
5. Is the female victim of harassment claiming that she was harassed?
6. Who is making the claim of sexual harassment?
7. What exactly is Wallop accused of doing?
8. Should complaints about harassment be allowed from people who weren't the victims of harassment themselves? (Express your opinion)
9. Does sex with consent between bosses and subordinates constitute sexual harassment? (Sanitsuda's question)
10. Doesn't the definition of sexual harassment in Thailand's labour laws rule out consensual relations?
11. Which Thai law covers sexual harassment?
12. What makes these laws difficult to enforce?
13. Who has benefited and not benefited from these laws?
14. Who should benefit from the laws?
15. If you were asked to make a list of prohibited "inappropriate acts" towards female employees by managers, which acts would you include? (Express your opinion)
16. Why are domestic workers vulnerable to sexual harassment, molestation, and rape? (Use inference, Express your opinion)
17. What can women usually expect when they bring rape or the threat of rape to the attention of authorities?
18. Why might have some people considered sexual harassment as normal male behaviour in the old days? (Express opinion)
19. What additional vulnerabilities do female migrant workers suffer from? Why?
20. What kind of abuse do transsexuals commonly suffer from?
21. Why aren't transsexuals covered by sexual harassment laws?
22. What special laws apply to sexual relations between civil servants and their subordinates?
23. What prevents these laws from being enforced?
24. Should Wallop have been prosecuted under applicable civil service laws rather than general labor laws? (Express your opinion)
25. What is the irony inherent in the ministry where the sexual harassment is alleged to have occured in?
Bangkok Post Article October 25, 2007
COMMENTARYAre sexual harassment laws only for show?
SANITSUDA EKACHAIGovernment Minister Accused of Sexual Harassment
After some weeks of suspense, it is now out that Wallop Ploytubtim, the top boss at the Social Development and Human Security Ministry, is at the centre of a sexual harassment allegation.
The permanent secretary, now moved to an inactive post in the PM's Office to facilitate the investigation, faces two allegations: corruption and sexual misconduct with a female subordinate.
Jarun Pukditanakul, justice permanent secretary and head of the investigating committee, has already admitted it is far more difficult to prove sexual harassment than corruption due to the lack of hard evidence.
An additional difficulty: the complaint does not come from the female subordinate in question, but from disgruntled officials who view the sexual tryst as an exchange of sexual favours for career promotion.
sexual harassment - unwanted, unwelcome attention directed toward a person's sexuality or sexual identity (See Wikipedia and Google definitions)
suspense - a state of uncertainty about what is going to happen
it is now out that... - information has been released that...
an allegation - a statement saying that someone has done something wrong
a subordinate - working under, supervised by, part of the staff or team of
hard evidence - evidence strong enough to prove something
disgruntled - angry about something
a sexual tryst - a meeting between lovers in a secret place
Harassment and Consent
But does sex with consent between bosses and subordinates constitute sexual harassment?
Don't try to find an answer in the definition of sexual harassment in our labour laws. There is nothing there.
According to the 1998 Labour Protection Law, it is illegal for employers or supervisors to sexually harass female employees, verbally or otherwise. Such advances are inappropriate acts.
But the law is unclear on what actually constitutes sexual harassment or impropriety. With such vagueness and lack of specific measures to ensure fair investigation and prevent threats and intimidation, the law is useful only for the government to show the world that is has done something to condemn sexual harassment.
For the female workers, nothing changes.
consent - agreeing to, allowing, permitting something to be done
constitutes - is, is defined to be
impropriety - doing things that are illegal or dishonest
vagueness - meaning not clear
intimidation - frighten people to control them
The Informal Sector and Other Vulnerable Groups
While this toothless law fails to protect female employees in private companies, their sisters in the informal sector are not protected at all.
Domestic workers, in particular, are extremely vulnerable to sexual harassment, molestation and rape. If they protest, they risk being fired.
Don't count on help from the police, who often blame women when rape crimes are committed. Those who complain about unwelcome sexual advances or the risk of rape only get a laugh in return.
The risk increases many fold for female migrant workers who are forced by the law to quietly endure sexual violence in all its ugly shades.
According to the law, they immediately become illegal and subject to arrest and deportation if they are fired. And they certainly will be if they refuse to put up with sexual harassment.
Transsexuals are also vulnerable. Being stereotyped as sexually promiscuous, they routinely face sexual abuse verbally and physically. Yet they do not get any legal protection. The Labour Protection Law only protects women.
toothless - powerless (people without teeth are powerless to eat food)
molestation - annoy or do something sexual to a person against their wishes
count on - rely on, depend on, expect, believe will happen
sexual advances - try to have a sexual relationship with someone (for example, "He made advances towards her, but she rejected his advances.")
migrant workers - workers who move from their region or country to work in a more prosperous place
deportation - when a foreigner is sent out of the country as legal punishment
stereotyped - (negative) when people believe that all members of a group have the same characteristics and behave in the same way
promiscuous - has sex with many different people
Civil Servants
You might argue that all these problems do not apply to government officials who are under much stricter work discipline and codes of conducts.
According to civil service law, superiors must adhere to moral conduct and serve as role models for their team. They are also prohibited from harassing their subordinates.
By this definition, any government official who commits adultery is subject to disciplinary punishment. So are those who use their status to force sex from subordinates.
These strict rules end up being impotent because no subordinates want to risk their jobs by acting as witnesses while the abusers' superiors believe protecting the organisation's name is more important than defending a woman's dignity.
The women who dare speak up, meanwhile, are often condemned as the provocateurs. Their words are ridiculed and their personal lives are dug into destroy their credibility. Or they are accused of making things up in their heads, of making a mountain out of a molehill or simply lacking a sense of humour.
Apart from nasty rumours, they also often face real on-the-job persecution afterwards.
This is why sexual harassment remains rife in the government sector.
Will the scandal at the Social Development and Human Security Ministry end differently?
If justice fails at the ministry which is supposed to protect women's rights, it will be yet more proof that our country's measures to prevent or punish violence against women are just for show.
role models - people who provide good examples to follow
impotent - has no power
dignity - how worthy something is of respect from other people (for example)
provocateurs - agent provocateurs, people employed to encourage people to break the law so they can be arrested and lose public support
credibility - believability
making a mountain out of a molehill - make a very small issue into a very large issue
persecution - cruel and unfair treatment of a group
rife - when a bad thing is very common
Sanitsuda Ekachai is Assistant Editor, Bangkok Post.
Answer Key:
1. Who is being accused of sexual harassment and what is his position in the government?
Wallop Ploytubtim, permanent secretary of the Social Development and Human Security Ministry.
2. What is a "permament secretary" in a ministry?
It is the highest ranking civil servant in a government ministry.
3. What are the crimes he is being charged with?
a. Corruption.
b. Sexual misconduct with a female subordinate.
4. Which of the crimes he is charged with is more difficult to prove? Why?
Sexual harassment is more difficult to prove than corruption because there is less hard evidence.
5. Is the female victim of harassment claiming that she was harassed?
No.
6. Who is making the claim of sexual harassment?
Disgruntled officials in the ministry.
7. What exactly is Wallop accused of doing?
He is accused of having a sexual relationship with a female subordinate as an exchange of sexual favours for career promotion.
8. Should complaints about harassment be allowed from people who weren't the victims of harassment themselves? (Express your opinion)
9. Does sex with consent between bosses and subordinates constitute sexual harassment? (Sanitsuda's question)
Alternatively: Isn't "consensual harassment" a contradiction?
Doesn't "consent" rule out "harassment"?
10. Doesn't the definition of sexual harassment in Thailand's labour laws rule out consensual relations?
No.
("Don't try to find an answer in the definition of sexual harassment in our labour laws. There is nothing there.")
11. Which Thai law covers sexual harassment?
The 1998 Labour Protection Law.
12. What makes these laws difficult to enforce?
a. It is unclear what constitutes "sexual harassment."
b. There are no specific measures to ensure fair investigation and prevent threats and intimidation of hte victim.
13. Who has benefited and not benefited from these laws?
a. The law has benefited the government's public image.
b. The law has not benefited female workers.
14. Who should benefit from the laws?
Female workers, of course.
15. If you were asked to make a list of prohibited "inappropriate acts" towards female employees by managers, which acts would you include? (Express your opinion)
16. Why are domestic workers vulnerable to sexual harassment, molestation, and rape? (Use inference, Express your opinion)
a. They work in the privacy of the home near male members of the family.
b. They are usually young, female, and unmarried.
c. If they protest, they can be easily fired with no one to defend them.
17. What can women usually expect when they bring rape or the threat of rape to the attention of authorities?
a. Blame for getting raped (e.g. What did you do to encourage him to rape you?)
b. Laughter (e.g. The stalker's strong attraction to you is just proof that he is really a man.)
18. Why might have some people considered sexual harassment as normal male behaviour in the old days? (Express opinion)
In one nearby Asian culture there is a folk saying: "only with ten chops will the tree fall" , meaning only persistent males will get their female. Is this true?
19. What additional vulnerabilities do female migrant workers suffer from? Why?
a. If they refuse to put up with sexual harassment, they are fired.
b. If they are fired, they are almost immediately subject to arrest and deportation.
20. What kind of abuse do transsexuals commonly suffer from?
a. There is a stereotype that transsexuals are sexually promiscuous.
b. They routinely face sexual abuse both verbally and physically.
21. Why aren't transsexuals covered by sexual harassment laws?
Because the law does not recognise them as females and the laws only apply to female employees.
22. What special laws apply to sexual relations between civil servants and their subordinates?
a. Superiors must adhere to moral conduct
b. Superiors must serve as role models for their team.
c. Superiors are prohibited from harassing their subordinates
d. Government officials are prohibited from committing adultery.
e. Government officials are prohibited from using their status to force sex from subordinates.
("According to civil service law, superiors must adhere to moral conduct and serve as role models for their team. They are also prohibited from harassing their subordinates.
By this definition, any government official who commits adultery is subject to disciplinary punishment. So are those who use their status to force sex from subordinates.")
23. What prevents these laws from being enforced?
a. Subordinates would not risk their job by acting as witnesses.
b. High ranking officials often believe that protecting the organisation's name is more important than justice for the female victim.
24. Should Wallop have been prosecuted under applicable civil service laws rather than general labor laws? (Express your opinion)
25. What is the irony inherent in the ministry where the sexual harassment is alleged to have occured in?
This ministry is supposed to protect women's rights, but in this case they are accused of violating them.
