Anti-Harassment Law 2018

Brief Description

The Anti-Harassment Law was promulgated by Royal Decree No. M/96, dated 31/05/2018, with the aim of combatting and preventing the crime of harassment, penalizing its perpetrators and protecting its victims, thus preserving the privacy, dignity and personal freedoms of an individual, as guaranteed by the provisions of the Sharia and other laws. Article 5 of the Law states that, "The competent entities in both the government and private sectors shall put in place the necessary measures to prevent and combat harassment in their own working environments, provided they include the following: (a) an internal complaint mechanism (ICM) within the entity; (b) the necessary procedures to ascertain the veracity and seriousness of complaints in a manner that maintains their confidentiality; (c) the dissemination and communication of such measures to their members." Moreover, the competent entities in the government sector and the private sector shall hold accountable and enact disciplinary measures on any of their members in case of any violation to the provisions of the Law, in accordance with the established procedures. Disciplinary accountability in accordance with this article shall not prejudice the right of a victim to submit a complaint to the competent authorities.