2013-11-20

I’lam Media Center launched a campaign called “Say no to harassment,” which aims to raise awareness in the Arab Palestinian society around the problem of sexual harassment.

  I’lam decided to focus on men as its target audience. Randa Kanaana, one of the producers, said, “Most campaigns against sexual harassment are directed toward victims to encourage them to expose the aggressor. However, we decided to change the target audience for our campaign to prevent the crime from happening by making the new generation aware of the seriousness of this issue.”

 In its 2013 semi-annual report, the organization Women Against Violence received 430 complaints of sexual assault. Twenty-nine percent were cases of sexual harassment where the attacker was an employer or a person in a position of power. The number of complaints increased by around 11.3% compared to last year, and the report found that victims knew 92% of the aggressors.  

 The campaign includes a booster and a short film made by I’lam, which was inspired by stories and experiences of sexual harassment that the women faced in their daily lives, both in the private and public spheres. The short film shows that sexual harassment can happen anywhere: at home, in the street, at work, or various other places, and sheds light on the fact that the only one at fault is the aggressor and never the victim.

 “Say no to harassment” is part of a course on human rights media campaigns that I’lam organized at the beginning of this year. Journalism and human rights professionals participated in workshops that resulted in five campaigns which discuss different social and political issues.  

The following people helped produce this campaign: Rabeea Eied, Randa Kanaana, Hala Natour, Rami Hedar, Abed al-Hadi Enaya, Odai Muhameed, Anas Abu Daabes, Kosay Abu al-Ful, Mariam Farah, Rawan Khaliliyah, Mostafa Rinawi, Yara Saleh, and Kristine Barham. Furaj Suliman arranged the music, and the photo montage is by Mohamed Shinawi.  

To watch the campaign, please visit this link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I9CmuqziLE8