Egypt’s policewomen protect females from sexual harassment on Eid

Cairo – Policewomen were deployed Monday night in Downtown Cairo, where they help prevent sexual harassment at the cinemas on the second day of Eid al-Fitr.

The policewomen facilitated the entrance and exit of females, who went to the cinemas. Some policewomen deterred sexual harassers in front of the cinemas.

Eid al-Fitr is the three-day celebration that follows the 30 days of fasting during Ramadan, the Islamic holy month. While Ramadan is known for its austerity and spirituality, in Egypt, Eid has come to be characterized by a significant spike in incidents of sexual harassment toward women. Such incidents range from cat-calling to groping women. 

In one of many campaigns to combat sexual harassment in Egypt, the Ministry of Interior has increased female police patrols in an effort to detect and report incidents of harassment and arrest harassers, particularly during Eid. Furthermore, in preparation for Eid al-Fitr the National Council for Women (NCW) announced they will operate 24-hours to receive complaints from women during the holiday period. 

According to a statement released on June 22 on the NCW’s official Facebook page, there will be a dedicated operations room administered by the council’s Women’s Complaints Office to receive grievances regarding harassment and offer legal aid to girls and women.