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Sexual harassment, bullying widespread in Australia police: Report

Monday, 22 August 2016 9:29 AM [ Last Update: Monday, 22 August 2016 9:38 AM ]

A new survey says more than 60 percent of staff in Australia Federal Police are being bullied. (File photo)

Almost fifty percent of women working for Australia’s national police have been sexually harassed in the past five year, a new report reveals.

A review of the workplace culture of the Australian Federal Police (AFP) has found that 46 percent of women and 20 percent of men have been sexually harassed in the workplace in the past five years.

Some 66 percent of women and 62 percent of men reported they were bullied in the workplace in the past five years. “These percentages are almost double the national average," read the report.

The review conducted by former sex discrimination commissioner Elizabeth Broderick suggested that the victims of bullying and harassment avoided to complain, because they feared it can have a negative impact on their job.

While some said complaints could leave them being ostracized, others claimed they took too long to resolve and the whole system was not “victim-focused.”

"In the areas of sexual harassment and bullying, urgent action is required," Broderick said.

Many women also reported difficulties in having to "fit in" to a male-dominated culture.

"We have certainly made progress but I still think there is a culture of sexual harassment and bullying," one female participant told the survey.

Former sex discrimination commissioner Elizabeth Broderick (L) and Australia Federal Police Andrew Colvin said they were disturbed by the widespread harassment and bullying. (Photo by ABC online)

AFP Commissioner Andrew Colvin also admitted that "things must change" and apologized to the staff who had been subjected to unacceptable behavior.

"These practices will not be tolerated," he said, adding that a new division would be established to lead cultural reform.

Several inquiries have been launched into abuse allegations in Australia’s military in recent years.

In June, an inquiry into the military found teenage recruits were subjected to horrendous physical and sexual abuse by their senior officers.

Another inquiry has also been launched into the abuse of aboriginal teenage inmates of the Don Dale Youth Detention Center in Northern Territory between 2010-2014.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) aired a CCTV footage on July 25, showing the youths being stripped naked by the guards at the facility, thrown by the neck into a cell and held for long periods in solitary confinement.

The United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) issued a statement expressing shock at the abuse of minors in the prison, calling on the authorities to compensate the victims.

Aborigines comprise three percent of Australia's population, while they make up 27 percent of the prison population and 94 percent of teen inmates in the Northern Territory.

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