Anti-sexual harassment bill still under scrutiny by MPs: Cayman News Service

(CNS): The Anti-Sexual Harassment Bill has gone through several rounds of public consultation and stakeholder review and is still under review since the Cabinet approved the legislative drafting notes in 2022. Minister responsible for Gender Affairs Catherine Ebanks-Wilkes revealed that the bill was just reconsidered by the caucus a few months ago and government members have requested changes to the proposed legislation.

The idea of ​​introducing such a bill in the Cayman Islands dates back fifteen years. But as successive governments have dragged their feet on passing it, the problem of people (mostly but not always women) dealing with sexual harassment, bullying and unwanted attention persists.

Former prime minister Wayne Panton, who shepherded the draft bill in 2023 and conducted nearly a year of public consultation, questioned why it had not yet been approved by Cabinet.

In response, Ebanks-Wilkes said the Department of Gender Affairs has been asked to review the proposed law. She said the caucus reviewed the bill in April and asked the department to “explore other options for reporting and adjudicating sexual harassment cases.” She said once the department has completed the tasks requested, the bill will go back to Cabinet for consideration.

However, with Parliament likely to be in recess until February or March at the latest, the bill is unlikely to be introduced before the general election. The consultation period was extended last year and the bill was redrafted, so it is unclear why the concerns of the caucus MPs were not addressed then.

Last year, more than 300 individuals and organizations submitted comments and participated in the consultation process, and Panton said at the time he was pleased with the level of support.

“This demonstrates our country’s expectation that government will address sexual harassment in a strong and thoughtful way,” he said at the time. “Our government recognises the size and scope of this legislation and therefore feels it is important to ensure everyone has the opportunity to provide feedback – particularly the business community, which will be asked to ensure that many of the bill’s provisions are upheld.”

However, the bill was stalled again as the business community questioned provisions designed to protect all workers from misconduct and harassment at work.