With numbers as high as 99.3 percent in Egypt and 80 percent in Saudi Arabia, women around the Arab world find themselves looking for a safe haven away from sexual harassment.
Activists, NGOs, and women rights groups have gone to great lengths to raise awareness on the issue and stir public opinion. Governments too are lending them a hand to help fight this epidemic.
Here are five examples on how Middle Eastern countries are combating sexual harassment:
1. Saudi Arabia's anti-harassment law
Saudi Arabia has been moving in the >right path these recent years, especially when it comes to women's rights and combating sexual harassment.
In September, the kingdom welcomed a draft law that criminalizes sexual harassment, which includes jail terms and flogging as possible penalties. The law is set to be implemented by the end of November this year.
According to Saudi Gazette, ''92 percent of the women polled in a recent study in Saudi Arabia found that sexual harassment is increasing due to the absence of proper punishment.''
2. Turkey's pink busses
The women’s branch of the conservative Islamist party in Turkey, Saadet (Felicity) Party, successfully launched all-women busses in Urfa back in 2015.
According to the BİRGÜN DAİLY, some women argue that "aggressive men must learn to be human" and have boycotted the female-only transportation methods.
Despite some opposition, the pink movement spread to include pink taxis driven by women.
3. Egypt's women-only taxi
Back in 2015, a group of Egyptian women led by Reem Fawzi, initiated their own limousine service, >Pink Taxi, guaranteeing women safe and private car rides.
4. Lebanon's Mesh Basita (It's not OK)
>Mesh Basita is a digital campaign led by the American University of Beirut's the KIP Project on Gender and Sexuality and in coordination with the newly created Ministry of State for W omens Affairs.
"What we’re doing is highlighting something that doesn’t get talked about in Lebanon very often, and it’s been a positive response – many people say they feel relieved they are finally able to talk about it," Heather Jaber, Communications Coordinator for the KIP project told The Independent.
The campaign encourages Lebanese women to speak up and call out harassers while urging legislative reform to criminalize sexual harassment in Lebanon.
5. Egypt's Emsek Mota7aresh (Spot a sexual harasser)
Emsek Mota7aresh is a Cairo-based digital and on-ground campaign aiming to raise awareness of virtual and real-life sexual harassment.
The campaign has been active since 2012 and has been working on supporting women's right to expose harassers everywhere, either by name or social media account.