Stigmatizing rape victims has serious consequences. It silences them, protects rapists, discourages them from seeking counseling and seeking justice, writes Peace A. Medie, senior lecturer at Bristol University.
Last August, Yves de M'Bella, a media personality in Ivory Coast, brings in a guest, Kader Traoré, in his entertainment show at prime time for show how a man could sexually assault a woman. The sequence, which was recorded in front of a studio audience and broadcast on a private television channel, the New Ivorian Channel, was officially intended to educate people about rape.
Viewers saw Traoré direct, using a female mannequin provided by M'Bella, a simulation brutal and obscene aggression. During this demonstration, M'Bella helped her guest position the mannequin and asked him insulting and insulting questions to the victims, including whether they liked to be raped. To top off this grotesque spectacle, the host then asked Traore to counsel women on how to avoid rape. The guest did so by advancing the usual stereotypes that hold victims (eg, "don't be out late") responsible for the behavior of rapists. The demonstration and subsequent exchanges were punctuated with laughter coming from the studio.
In September, an Abidjan court sentenced M'Bella to 12 months suspended sentence and a fine of two million FCFA (US $ 3) for “apologizing for rape” and “indecent assault”. His guest, for his part, was sentenced to two years in prison and a fine of 600 FCFA (500 USD). This decision followed a general condemnation of the footage, including by women's organizations and women's rights activists, who argued that she had trivialized rape, had rekindled the trauma of the victims and encouraged the culture of rape.
Indeed, the televised demonstration was a showcase for rape apology and rape myths which are very familiar and ubiquitous in many societies. Through their words and actions, the duo adopted attitudes aimed at trivializing this crime and protecting rapists, while holding victims accountable for the actions of their attackers.
In the frame of my research in Ivory Coast, I documented the prejudices that result from such attitudes tending to fuel rape culture and stigmatize the victims. They also dissuade many of them from revealing their assault, accessing health services and seeking justice.
Rape culture
As part of research carried out in Abidjan and Bouaké in 2014 and 2015, I interviewed 21 women victims of sexual violence and the parents of minors who were victims of rape, within the framework of of a study on the State's response to gender-based violence. One of the objectives of the research was to understand why some cases were reported to the police and gendarmes while others were not. In the 2011 national demographic and health survey, about 5% of the girls and women interviewed said they had suffered sexual violence, the majority of cases having been settled out of court.
One of the main conclusions of my research my research was that basically women did not disclose their rape to the police - even though they overwhelmingly wanted the rapist to be arrested and prosecuted by the state - because they did not want people to know that they had been raped . They were not only afraid of not being supported by their community, but also to be the object of mockery, gossip, stigmatization and ostracism.
These women were afraid that their relatives and members of their community would blame them for their assault and make fun of them. A survivor of Bouaké expressed such fear as follows:
When people know you've been raped… they point fingers at you… and it keeps you from having relationships and people pull away from you a bit.
Because of this fear of guilt, many of them did not have the courage to disclose not only the assault to the police, but also to their relatives and friends. This guilt and stigma had devastating consequences.
This rape culture has helped silence them and protect rapists, discouraging them from accessing health care and seeking justice. It also affected their ability to work and have a normal social life. Several women told me that if they had the money, they would move to a new neighborhood to escape the guilt of the victims, the mockery and the trivialization of the ordeals they endured.
Police and gendarmes
My research revealed that the police and gendarmes react better to sexual violence since 2011, in Côte d'Ivoire. Thanks to reforms introduced after the conflict, police and gendarmes are more inclined to refer such cases to court and less likely to blame victims again. Nevertheless, some law enforcement officers continue to display these harmful attitudes. A 21-year-old Abidjan woman describes his experience :
He {a police officer} came out and asked me: ʺYou know what you are saying about this young man is serious? Do you know they're going to send him to jail? Why do you actually want to do this? Did he really sleep with you? ˮ… So you say I can get up and come in front of all these people and say that I was raped? First, I will be subjected to their gaze. They're going to talk about me, point the finger at me… I didn't want to pursue the case.
Some of the women questioned did not want to file a complaint because they thought the police and gendarmes would not believe them. At the time of the interview, of the 17 complaints finally lodged, 5 had resulted in arrest and conviction, and one conviction had been quashed. Only 4 of the 17 women who lodged a complaint said they were satisfied with the way in which the police and gendarmes handled their case, hence the need to undertake major reforms in the criminal justice sector to further improve the way law enforcement officers handle cases of rape victims.
Hope
Yet the study is also hopeful.
Women were more likely to report rape to police when those closest to them believed their story and encouraged them to report rape to the police. This support also led some of them to go to a health establishment for treatment. Support from family and friends is also important for the emotional well-being of survivors.
Most survivors changed their mind about not reporting the rape to police after talking to a relative or male friend. This observation highlights the need to become Allied rape victims and for society to reject the myths and excuses associated with rape.
The demonstration of rape on M'Bella's show shows that much remains to be done to change attitudes; it is the illustration of inappropriate behavior vis-à-vis sexual violence in force in many societies around the world. The swift condemnation by women's rights activists in Côte d'Ivoire is exemplary and reflects the work to combat sexual violence, accomplished by women African feminist movements.
Most harmful behavior is, however, more subtle. It therefore becomes necessary, including in pre-university educational establishments, to engage in serious discussions and to provide a solid education at all levels, in order to question ideas about male domination and to fiercely defend human rights. of all girls and women to live free of violence.
Peace A. Media, Senior Lecturer, Gender and International Politics, University of Bristol
This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.