IT is now more than two years since the death of Emily Drouet. At first, the 18-year-old from Glasgow seemed to be settling in well at Aberdeen University but, unbeknownst to her family, she had become involved in a violent relationship with another student. Abused verbally, physically and psychologically, she committed suicide in her halls of residence in March 2016.
For Emily’s mother Fiona, the tragedy was the beginning of a terrible dark period, but in the middle of the grief Mrs Drouet also threw herself into campaigning for a change to the way universities deal with gender-based violence and harassment. Together with student organisations and other groups, Mrs Drouet called for better training for staff and students, better information for students who suspect that a friend is being abused and clearer ways to report gender-based violence.
The campaign was not without resistance – some universities appeared to be worried about bad publicity – but now, after many months of hard fighting, the calls for change have paid off with the publication by the Scottish Government of new guidance on gender violence. The new set of principles pretty much takes forward the ideas that Mrs Drouet and others set out in their campaign and Mrs Drouet herself says that the guidance is a significant turning point.
The ideas will have to be developed and implemented by the universities of course, but the underlying principles are sound. After the death of her daughter, Mrs Drouet found that support for students like Emily was patchy at best and completely inadequate at worst, but universities will now have to introduce guidance and training for staff on how to proceed when they are told about gender-based violence. The development of secure data collection systems to record incidences of violence is also a significant breakthrough. After all, how can universities find solutions – or be held to account for failing to find them – if they are not aware of the scale of the problem?
There is also an indication in the new guidance of one of the deeper problems that underlines the need for change: misogynistic and laddish behaviour. One NUS survey suggests that one in four female students have experienced unwanted sexual behaviour; Fiona Drouet also believes that there is a profoundly misogynistic culture across the university sector.
Tackling and changing that culture will not be easy. It will mean establishing a code of conduct – not so easy when opinions still vary widely on what is, and is not, acceptable. Universities, parents, friends – indeed all of us – will also have to make easier for men and women to challenge and oppose unacceptable behaviour. And for those who do overstep the mark, they must know that there will be sanctions. Fiona Drouet has spent nearly two years trying to get to this point; the changes proposed today could be her daughter’s legacy.
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