Victim blaming and an image of the “ideal victim” are the main reasons many people have waited until now to speak out about their experiences of sexual abuse, a counselor said yesterday.
In response to the surging #MeToo movement implicating alleged abusers across the political, academic and arts fields, the National Human Rights Commission yesterday convened a news conference in Taipei to discuss its ongoing sexual harassment survey among minors.
The project, which began in July last year, provides safe avenues for victims to tell their stories in order to gain a better understanding of sexual harassment on campuses and in youth shelters.
Photo: CNA
As of last month, the commission had completed 52 interviews, 44 with victims and eight with significant others of survivors, Taiwan Guidance and Counseling Association chair Kuo Li-an (郭麗安) said.
Among the victims, 86 percent were women and fewer than 10 percent were older than 40, said Kuo, who is coleading the project.
One victim was abused when they were younger than six, she said, adding that 42 percent were assaulted more than 11 times.
The victims were all young at the time of the incidents, meaning that many occurred in places that were meant to be safe, Kuo said.
Moreover, nearly 40 percent of victims had never told anyone what happened, she said.
About 27 percent revealed the incident six years to a decade after it happened, 15 percent revealed it 11 to 20 years afterward and 12 percent only revealed it two decades after the fact, she added.
Many people are not aware of what happened after they have been harassed or abused, Kuo said.
For example, an elementary or junior-high school student might not know they had been molested if they are groped while sitting on a teacher’s lap, she said.
Misogyny is the reason these victims chose not to speak out, as they feared being blamed for the incident, Kuo said.
Taiwanese society has a stereotype of the “ideal victim,” meaning that they will not be taken seriously if they do not cry, if they wear revealing clothing or are otherwise considered socially unacceptable, she said.
Many people also find it hard to believe a person was assaulted if they did not run away, call for help or scream during the incident, or if they do not appear depressed or anxious afterward, she said.
Many of the interviewees were accompanied by friends or partners rather than family members, as many people find that their relatives are bound by the image of the “ideal victim,” Kuo said.
Most were accompanied by partners, likely because the aftereffects of abuse are most acutely felt in intimate relationships, she said, adding that this is why patience and companionship are so important.
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