A Digest of Case Law on the Human Rights of Women - Asia Pacific ...

Vishaka v State <strong>of</strong> Rajasthan (India)
<strong>of</strong> the Judiciary in the LAWASIA Region” which supports the Court’s power to
set down guidelines in the absence <strong>of</strong> domestic legislation. The Court adopted the
definition <strong>of</strong> sexual harassment from General Recommendation 19 <strong>of</strong> CEDAW and
provided detailed guidelines to prevent and deter sexual harassment for employers to
adhere to. These guidelines include a complaint process, a disciplinary process and
an appeal process.
Commentary
This case is important on a number <strong>of</strong> levels. At the outset, the recognition <strong>of</strong> the
rights <strong>of</strong> women to a safe working environment free from sexual harassment and
abuse is an important acknowledgment <strong>of</strong> the public lives <strong>of</strong> women. The active
approach <strong>of</strong> the Court to utilise the Constitution to step in to protect those rights,
in the absence <strong>of</strong> any legislative protection, is an extraordinary example <strong>of</strong> judicial
activism in favour <strong>of</strong> the rights <strong>of</strong> women. Further, the acknowledgement <strong>of</strong> CEDAW,
the World Conference on Women in Bejiing and the use <strong>of</strong> the Constitution to enforce
the provisions and principles <strong>of</strong> the international norms represented within them, in
favour <strong>of</strong> the rights <strong>of</strong> women, is a positive indication <strong>of</strong> the courts willingness to
embrace equality for women.
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