Ho Chi Minh City has painted a bus terminal and dozens of its buses orange in a move to raise awareness of street harassment against women and girls.

The orange buses echo the United Nations theme for this year’s 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, which is “Orange the World: #HearMeToo."

It is part of the “UNiTE to End Violence against Women” campaign initiated by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

Twenty-six buses running on route No. 53, which connects the Le Hong Phong Bus Terminal in District 10 with a campus of the Vietnam National University in Thu Duc District, have been painted orange to spread the message of protecting women and girls from gender-based violence and sexual harassment.

Posters and audio broadcasts are available on these buses to raise passengers’ awareness of the issue.

A bus terminal on Ham Nghi Street, just opposite downtown Ben Thanh Market, has also been painted orange in support of the cause.

Officials cut the ribbon to launch an orange bus terminal in Ho Chi Minh City on November 28, 2018. Photo: Tuoi Tre

The fresh new looks of Ho Chi Minh City buses were jointly unveiled on Wednesday morning by UN Women and the municipal Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs.

Sexual harassment on buses has been a cause for concern for female riders in Ho Chi Minh City, said Ha Le An, deputy director of the city’s Public Transport Management Authority.

The program is expected to inhibit uncivilized behaviors and improve safety on city buses, helping to encourage citizens’ switch from personal vehicles to public transportation.

More measures will be taken in the near future to crack down on sexual harassment in public places in the southern metropolis, officials said.

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