DETAILS have been released as the Scottish Government appoints key experts to a working group on making sexist harassment against women a hate crime.
Legal and human rights experts are amongst those brought in to consider whether misogynistic behaviour should become an offence under Scots law.
The Scottish Government's Hate Crime Bill would allow misogynistic harassment to become a standalone offence while also adding age prejudice to existing aggravating factors.
Labour peer Baroness Helena Kennedy, a human rights lawyer, will lead the taskforce examining the case for making misogyny an offence.
It will meet for the first time later this month.
Members include former International Criminal Court investigator Susan Kemp, who also served on the United Nations' team of experts on sexual violence in armed conflict, and Mona Rishmawi, head of the rule of law, equality and non-discrimination branch in the office of the UN human rights commissioner.
Professor John Devaney, who specialises in domestic abuse and gender-based violence, lawyer Shelagh McCall, a founding commissioner at the Scottish Human Rights Commission, law and gender lecturer Dr Chloe Kennedy, Emma Ritch, the director of feminist advocacy organisation Engender, are also on board.
The group will aim to produce a report for the government on its findings from evidence sessions over the next 12 months.
Kennedy said: "This is an important piece of work addressing the special forms of violence, transgression and abuse experienced by women which may emanate from misogyny.
"The law often fails women and the panel will consider the law's capacity to address such crimes."
Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf commented: "While Lord Bracadale, in his independent review of hate crime legislation, recommended that gender should be added to hate crime law, leading women's organisations were opposed to this approach.
"They also called for misogyny to be considered as a standalone, criminal offence in Scotland.
"I am pleased to see that this important piece of work is now well under way, with an expert panel, appointed by Baroness Kennedy, to give this issue the proper consideration that it deserves.
"This marks another important milestone in making our society safe, equal and fair."
In Scotland, offences are currently aggravated by prejudice against a victim's race, religion, disability, sexual orientation or their transgender status.
The Scottish Government's proposed legislation would incorporate the existing aggravating factors and add the characteristic of age, with the potential to include sex at a later date so misogynistic harassment can become a standalone offence.
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