A Silent Pandemic: An Exploratory Study of Sexual Harassment in the Implementation of RA 7877 (Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995) among Female and LGBTQIA+ UP Manila CAS Students

Abstract

Gender-based violence, specifically sexual harassment, has become more prevalent amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. It has become a silent pandemic affecting women and lesbians, gay, bisexual, transexual, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) people who do not conform to male-dominated standards. There are numerous studies on sexual harassment in universities, but only a few studies focused on the implementation of sexual harassment-related laws and programs in the university. In connection, this study investigated the implementation of Republic Act 7877 (Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995) at the University of the Philippines Manila College of Arts and Sciences (UP Manila CAS) since the second semester of the academic year (A.Y.) 2019-2020. With that, the researchers sought to define the meaning and various forms of sexual harassment and identify the forms of sexual harassment that exist and occur at UP Manila CAS. Furthermore, this study examined the policies and programs currently implemented at UP Manila CAS in compliance with RA 7877 (Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995), particularly in addressing sexual harassment. The researchers assessed the effectiveness of these policies and programs at the college and explored how these could be improved and strengthened. To fulfill the study's objectives, the researchers recruited participants from three different groups at UP Manila CAS: 1) UPM CAS female and LGBTQIA+ students who had experienced sexual harassment since the second semester of A.Y. 2019-2020, 2) UPM CAS and Gender officials in charge of anti-sexual harassment policies and programs, and 3) UPM student-led organizations that actively promote the interests of people of marginalized genders and are aware of this pressing issue. The researchers used purposive sampling for participant selection and semi-structured key informant interviews for data collection. For this study, the researchers conducted a total of 16 interviews. Through Creswell’s (2015) model of qualitative data analysis, the researchers found that the common forms of sexual harassment at UP Manila CAS are cyber harassment, verbal harassment, and physical harassment. UP Manila CAS mainly follows the UP ASH Code and the Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR) of RA 7877 for UP in addressing sexual harassment at the college. Gender awareness campaigns are also held by student-led organizations at UP Manila CAS as part of their anti-sexual harassment strategies. However, the findings show that the students are unaware of these policies and programs, distrust the officials, and are anxious about the bureaucratic processes involved in filing a sexual harassment complaint. Moreover, the researchers concluded that the currently implemented anti-sexual harassment policies and programs at UP Manila CAS are ineffective. Many sexual harassment occurrences are still underreported due to poor information dissemination and other present limitations of the policies and programs, including redundant project themes, a weak security system, inefficient processes, and questionable officials.