Nazir Afzal: Men must begin to question behaviour which 'ultimately makes women feel less safe'
"It is absolutely essential for us men to begin to question our behaviour which ultimately makes women feel less safe", said Nazir Afzal.
The former Chief Prosecutor and Welsh Government Advisor's comments come after a new campaign has launched across Wales.
It aims to call on the public to challenge assumptions about harassment against women which are often wrongly seen as 'harmless'.
‘Call out only’ highlights how down-played actions like wolf-whistling and phrases like "I ‘only’ slapped her bum" become much more sinister and the seriousness of the action seen when the word ‘only’ is removed.
Speaking on the issue, Nazir said: "We have spent a lot of time talking about rape and sexual offences and about the '50 shades of violence' against women and girls, but it starts often with the most innocuous comments and with the kind of behaviour that perhaps we haven't considered as men could be making women less safe.
He added: "This campaign that says it's not right to say that 'I only meant this' and 'I only did this.' It is absolutely essential for us men to begin to question our behaviour which ultimately makes women feel less safe.
Nazir explained how there is a need to do more and simply saying "I'm not sexist myself or I'm not a misogynist myself" is not enough.
"You have got to be anti-sexist, you've got to be anti-misogyny because we ultimately create the environment that enables the more serious behaviour to take place. Think about the impact of what you do and stop it."
The Welsh Government is also raising awareness across communities on the types of behaviour associated with harassment and how they make women feel.
It's calling on bystanders - particularly men - to call out inappropriate behaviour when and where safe to do so.
This includes empowering men to call out abusive and sexist behaviour among their male friends and colleagues in a safe way - promoting a culture of equality and respect.
This could mean not feeling pressured to laugh along to sexist conversations or 'banter' and asking questions like 'What do you mean by that? What makes you think that?'
Recent figures found two in three women aged 16 to 34 years experienced at least one form of harassment in the last year.
This includes 44% having experienced catcalls, whistles, unwanted sexual comments or jokes, as well as 29% feeling like they were being followed.
Following a number of horrific instances against women being seen across the UK this year, Kidwelly RFC’s under 15’s team decided to take a proactive approach in preventing violence against women.
The young Carmarthenshire club asked publicly what they could do to positively influence the young men in their area – prompting wide praise across social media.
Team Manager, Julian Lloyd, explained why the boys will also be supporting the ‘Call out only’ campaign.
"We want to empower our boys to call out misogyny when they see it, stop it at source, before it escalates. We want to create a squad of young men that are empathetic, strong and resilient - young men that are trusted allies to the women in their lives."
The campaign reflects evidence that victims of sexual harassment are disproportionately female and perpetrators disproportionately male.
Minister for Social Justice Jane Hutt said: "Wales will not be a bystander to sexual harassment, stalking or abuse.
"None of these behaviours are acceptable, none of them are OK. Some will happen in isolation, others can lead to an escalation.
"The word ‘only’ is frequently used to explain away and excuse inappropriate behaviour. The word gets used in conversation by men to justify their actions. It gets used by people to dilute women’s genuine fears."