00:01Police have been testing new ways to deal with harassment on the streets, including undercover patrols where officers pose as joggers or walkers.
00:09These trials aim to highlight how frequently women face unwanted attention and to intervene early if behaviour becomes threatening.
00:15A generation ago, catcalling and wolf whistles, as they often were called, it was perhaps laughed off as just being the way of things.
00:22The fact that, of course, it's now become something which is criminal, and interestingly, police force is dedicating officers to go running in the expectation that you might actually catch someone.
00:33It's a difficult one. There may be those who argue this is not the best use of police resources.
00:38Officers say not every incident results in an arrest. Some cases are dealt with by speaking to those involved and explaining the impact of their actions.
00:46But repeat or serious offenders are pursued through the courts. This approach is meant to stop problems before they escalate.
00:54Now, where are these attitudes coming from? I think it's the pernicious influence of the social media and, of course, the fact that many people get their leads, if you like, from what they see on social media platforms.
01:08And, of course, we refer to the Tates, who are famously misogynistic in their attitudes.
01:15If young men sort of see this and they sort of see it as being somehow acceptable and legitimate, then, of course, that must sort of rub off.
01:24So it's a sort of big, big problem.
01:26Polling shows public opinion is split on whether certain behaviours, like persistent comments, blocking someone's way or invading personal space, should be made criminal offences.
01:37Support is stronger for tackling the more aggressive behaviour, while fewer people believe wolf whistling alone should lead to prosecution.
01:43The reported change is the sort of the statistics that come from criminal investigations.
01:51Now, does this mean that sort of attacks on women have gone up? Possibly so.
01:55I suspect that what is at the heart of this is that the police are now taking sort of crimes against women far more seriously than would have been the case a generation ago,
02:04and maybe even 10 or 15 years ago, when, if something happened to a woman, it was regarded as just being sort of something that women just had to sort of put up with.
02:13Campaigners argue harassment discourages women from exercising or moving freely in public spaces, especially after dark.
02:20Police believe combining education, community outreach and enforcement could help,
02:25but there's still debate over how far the law should go to keep people safe.
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