Opinion | To celebrate women, Singapore must change how men think about sexual harassment

Online vitriol against comedienne Sharul Channa who called out talk show host Viswa Sadasivan for his sexual comment reveals misconceptions about harassment

Asian countries should focus on gender awareness training in schools, zero tolerance for offenders, and celebrating positive male role models

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Despite making significant improvements in closing the gender gap, changing attitudes towards gender equality remains an uphill challenge across Asia. Photo: AFP

Published: 8:00am, 19 Feb 2021Updated: 9:00am, 19 Feb 2021

Singapore’s “Year of Celebrating SG Women” – a national effort in 2021 to review issues affecting women and spark a mindset change in society on values such as gender equality and respect – has not started on a promising note.

When a Singaporean woman took to Facebook earlier this month to describe how a man had made a sexual comment to her during a conversation in a professional setting, the disdainful – and downright misogynistic – responses from male social media users came in fast and furious.

The man in question was “an outstanding human” and the woman was “picking on something that is not there”, one user proclaimed. “Making a mountain out of a molehill. Next”, said another.

Others latched on to the woman’s profession – she is Sharul Channa, a full-time comedienne – and asked why she could not take a joke, but thought the comment by public relations firm owner and talk show host Viswa Sadasivan constituted sexual harassment.

These reactions show that even in a developed society like Singapore, which has made significant improvements in closing the gender gap, changing attitudes towards gender equality will be an uphill challenge.

Sharul had been invited to an online talk show hosted by Viswa about “being a stand-up comedian, who also speaks on women’s issues”. Before the recording, which took place on Zoom, Viswa asked her why she was wearing a rose brooch on her left collar. She replied that she wore it to distract from the pattern on her top, to which Viswa replied: “It would be more distracting if you were wearing only that rose.”

She raised her discomfort about the comment with Viswa’s staff after the recording, and received an apology from the former nominated member of parliament. She later went public about it, stating on Facebook that this “is one of the biggest issues women face; workplace harassment. And If I don’t speak out about this, I am not being true to myself and what I stand for”.

Opinion | To celebrate women, Singapore must change how men think about sexual harassment

Online vitriol against comedienne Sharul Channa who called out talk show host Viswa Sadasivan for his sexual comment reveals misconceptions about harassment Asian countries should focus on gender awareness training in schools, zero tolerance for offenders, and celebrating positive male role models

Online vitriol against comedienne Sharul Channa who called out talk show host Viswa Sadasivan for his sexual comment reveals misconceptions about harassment

Asian countries should focus on gender awareness training in schools, zero tolerance for offenders, and celebrating positive male role models