Department of Legal Affairs: Serious cases of sexual harassment in KD as well

The executive power by amending the public service law wants to explicitly include sexual harassment in the disciplinary offences, as reported before the Legal Committee of the Parliament.

The Committee started on Wednesday, among other things, the article-by-article discussion of the "Public Service (Amendment) (No. 3) Law of 2021" where it is clarified that among the disciplinary offenses of public servants that involve a lack of honesty or moral turpitude, it is included sexual harassment and gender-based harassment.

The if. President of the Legal Committee of the Parliament, Fotini Tsiridou, in her statements after the end of the session, said that they had the opportunity to study how best to send the message that among the disciplinary offenses of public servants that involve a lack of honesty or moral obscenity, is included sexual harassment and harassment.

"We discussed ways, legislative arrangements that will help to better send the message that yes these two offenses involve moral obscenity and to give them the necessary dimension so as to send the necessary messages to society, that these are not going to be accepted in workplaces and in society in general," he added.

The MP of AKEL, Aristos Damianou, said in his statements that AKEL expresses its satisfaction with the fact that the executive power, by amending the law on public service, wants to explicitly include sexual harassment in disciplinary offences.

"At a time when sexual harassment and even worse abuse is taking on terrifying proportions, at a time when society's awareness of these issues needs to peak, we believe it is very important to give visibility and voice to these reprehensible forms of behavior and in public service. That is why at today's meeting we submitted proposals for further improvement and enrichment of the amending legislation and our intention is certainly to vote for it", he noted.

At the same time, Mr. Damianou continued, they want to express their concern over the fact that they are passing very important legislations, but these legislations are very rarely implemented and even more rarely some are prosecuted and punished by the courts.

"For this, together with the laws, it is good for the competent authorities, the prosecuting authorities, to become more aware. We now have very serious cases of sexual harassment, which are also recorded in the Republic of Cyprus. When we talk and talk about the #MeToo Movement we have to say it and mean it. These things are condemnable by whoever they come from especially when there is a relationship of influence or power at the expense of the victims," ​​he concluded.

Source: KYPE