Local Ordinances against Sexual Harassment in Public Spaces

Brief Description

The passage of local ordinance such as the anti-catcalling ordinance in the country’s major cities is a big boost to the campaign to protect women from daily street harassment, and a clear policy shift on the part of the local government. In May 2016, the Quezon City passed the ordinance penalizing sexual harassment of women in public spaces. This made the Quezon City as the first local government in the country to penalize street-level harassment of women. On June 28, 2018, the City Council of Manila also passed an ordinance penalizing catcalling in the city. Ordinance No. 7857 or “An Ordinance Penalizing Catcalling and Other Forms of Public Sexual Harassment”, penalizes all forms of sexual harassment in public spaces such as catcalling, wolf-whistling, leering, groping, and many others. These ordinances are part of the Safe Cities and Safe Public Spaces Initiative of UN Women.