WCC welcomes SIC directive to release Hema Committee report

The Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) has welcomed the State Information Commission's (SIC) directive issued on July 6 to reveal the findings of the Justice Hema Committee report. This decision comes over four years after the report was first submitted to the State government of Kerala, to address sexual harassment and gender inequality in the Malayalam film industry. As per the SIC order, only information barred under the Right to Information Act and details impacting the privacy of those involved should be withheld.

The WCC, through a social media post, stated, "The Women in Cinema Collective wholeheartedly welcomes the State Information Commission’s order to release the findings of the Justice Hema Committee report. The order that breaks the long and disappointing silence indeed gives hope to all of us who have been relentlessly striving to break through."

The note also stressed the importance of this disclosure by adding, "We would like to revisit many questions that we have continued asking over the years as the Justice Hema Committee report once again surfaces and becomes the topic of discussion. Suggesting to implement solutions without revealing the findings was an exercise of mockery of the system. Hence, we strongly believe that this move to reveal the findings with accountability can be an authentic basis for real solutions, change, and progress."

Thanking the media fraternity's solidarity in following up on the release of the report, the note concluded with the hope that “survivors will be given justice and they can at least in the future have workplaces to go to without any fear, discrimination, or exploitation.”

The Justice Hema Committee report is expected to reveal information that could significantly impact prominent figures in the industry. The committee was formed in the aftermath of an incident of sexual assault on an actor in 2017.