CRIME PREVENTION & PASSENGER SAFETY
Tweeting back
Incidents are treated seriously regardless of when they occur, and the campaign highlights how doing so could help stop such abuse from happening to others. Members of the public responding to the launch on Twitter welcomed the project, with many calling it “an important step forwards”. People were also keen to see it implemented in their local area as well as the capital.
The BTP used social media to give real-time responses to public questions, reassuring passengers about the legitimacy of their reports and reiterating the commitment to treat each claim seriously.
During a live Twitter interview with the BTP, Everyday Sexism’s founder Laura Bates called the project “an enormously welcome step forward in acknowledging these crimes which are so often brushed off, belittled or dismissed”.
She called it “a brilliant, landmark moment where police are listening directly to victims’ voices – we hope the fi rst of many collaborations!”
Addressing those who have suffered unwelcome sexual behaviour on public transport, she added: “There is no ‘right’ response – the only person to blame is the perpetrator – nobody can say you ‘should’ have reacted differently.
“If in doubt, report it – the police want to hear about every instance of harassment, to build up a picture of the problem.”
Turning a blind eye
The issues surrounding under-reporting could also be tackled by fellow travellers, Ch Insp Garrett suggested. “We need to get back to basics in a very real way in a sense of having guardianship and looking after each other on the Tube.”
People ‘turning a blind eye’ can damage victims’ confi dence to report offences, and simply asking if certain behaviour is welcome, or if a person is alright, could create a far more supportive environment on the transport network and beyond.
“It’s so frustrating, when you read some of these victim statements and they say ‘I wasn’t sure what was going on, no-one else was doing anything’. We’ve got to get that positive cycle going rather than this ‘No-one else saw it, it’s not important, I’m just going to move on’.”
Catching criminals
Sexual harassment can carry stigma for the individual affected, as well as confusion around intention to harm. He said: “The transport network provides some of our offenders with an easy place to operate – huge crowds of people. With that comes anonymity.”
But he added that such a consequence-free environment “isn’t the case at all”.
“As soon you come on the Underground network, or onto a bus, you’re captured by CCTV. The person who rings up and says ‘the
guy in the red t-shirt with a baseball cap did X,Y and Z to me’, we can trace where they came from. Inevitably they’ve got Oyster cards.
“It is an environment where offences take place, but we can catch them as well – and we do.”
Going (inter)national
Given time, Ch Insp Garrett said the scheme “absolutely” should be rolled out onto the national network, “anywhere these offences are happening”.
Recognising the common nature of unwanted sexual behaviour, Ch Insp Garrett concluded: “There’s no reason why this can’t be rolled out.
“It must be happening in other transport hubs and we can take best practice everywhere as soon as we’ve proved the concept with our partners.”
Network Rail and train operators will have their part to play if this is implemented on a larger scale, but it is diffi cult to imagine any objections.
“We are getting some momentum because absolutely everyone’s on side. There isn’t really a cynical voice to be heard because there’s no cynicism in this at all.”
Ch Insp Paul Garrett
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rail technology magazine Aug/Sep 13 | 73
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