A video showing the mass sexual harassment on an Egyptian girl has gone viral on social media platforms on Christmas Eve, provoking a wave of public outrage.
The video depicts a group of young men who were sexually assaulting a girl down the street in Mansoura, a town in the Dakahlia governorate, in northern Egypt.
The girl was screaming for help but in vain, as the harassers tore her clothes. After chilling screams, some other young men carried the assaulted girl inside a car.
Sexual harassment was barely discussed in Egypt before 2006. The Egyptian Center for Women's Rights sought to draw attention to it, but the public's response was that it was an American idea wrongly applied to Egyptian society.
It is noteworthy that the United Nations General Assembly in September 2018 adopted, without a vote, an Egyptian resolution on sexual harassment and exploitation during the UN peace-keeping missions.
The resolution under the rubric “Sexual abuse and exploitation: implementing zero-tolerance policy” aimed to prevent all kinds of sexual exploitation throughout the United Nations system, including the agencies, funds and programs.
The resolution also urged the UN secretary-general to present reports on measures and progress achieved in that matter.
In the meantime, Egypt’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Mohamed Idris delivered a speech before the General Assembly on the occasion of the adoption of the resolution saying that Egypt is committed to supporting the efforts exerted by the Secretary General to implement zero-tolerance policy towards sexual abuse cases.
“Listing the issue on the General Assembly agenda opens the door for the member states’ visions,” Idris added.
He pointed out that President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s joining to Circle of Leadership initiative in 2017 and his partaking in a high-level meeting on preventing sexual abuse prove Egypt’s interest in combating such crimes.
The ambassador highlighted the pioneering role played by Egypt in peace-keeping missions over decades as it is considered one of the largest contributors to the UN peace-keeping forces.
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