The speaker of parliament Rebecca Kadaga has asked all people who are sexually harassed at their work place to report to her office so that she can take action.
Kadaga made the call during a news conference at parliament just after a meeting with the attorney general William Byaruhanga , gender Minister Janet Mukwaya and the prime minister Dr Ruhakana Rugunda where she was briefed on the case of a senior state Attorney Samantha Mwesigye who recently broke silence over sexual harassment by a male supervisor
On 22nd of May a delegation from women movement led by national youth female MP Anna Adeke petitioned the speaker kadaga seeking for her intervention into the alleged sexual harassment within the ministry of justice and constitutional affairs.
The women activists sought parliament intervention after Samantha Mwesigye had complained that she had reported the matter to several government offices including the one of the prime minister but was not helped.
Now Kadaga says that an internal committee was set up within the ministry of justice to investigate the allegations and action will be taken after the report has been released.
Although Mwesigye recently complained that apart from the committee taking long to produce the report, she does not trust it.
However Kadaga said that if the complainant is not satisfied with the committee report she can proceed to the industrial court.
Mwesigye alleges that the sexual harassment by his supervisor has taken a decade. A Uganda Human Rights Defenders Association (UHRDA) survey carried in 2013 in 2,910 organizations indicated that 90 percent of women are sexually harassed at places of work by their male seniors.
The study was carried out in companies, financial institutions, churches, health centers, universities, and other settings. The Human resource managers have also called for the enactment of the Human Resource Bill 2016 to curb sexual harassment at places of work.
The call to have a law comes after an outcry by the secretaries and Administrative Professionals in Uganda complained over sexual harassment and advances at work by their bosses.