Rape… against the law, but it still happens

“Two 12-year-old boys have been charged over the alleged assault and rape of a six-year-old girl at a primary school on Sydney's northern beaches.” 1 September 2016

These boys have been released on bail, but because they are children their jail won’t make a difference to what they did.

“The comments said: ‘I. Hope. Somebody. Rapes. You. Today. :).’” 7 September 2016

Olivia Nuzzi, Washington reporter for The Daily Beast, had claimed that the Republican Krawitz had harassed her since 2015, and his latest comments happened very recently. No court case, but Olivia should be proud with how women take what she did to heart – publicise him.

“‘Coked-up’ British stockbroker Daniel Green testified in court that he had trouble having sex with a woman because of the size of his penis during a cocaine and champagne-fuelled office party.” 9 September 2016

The woman he raped had gotten drunk and was asleep under her desk when he crawled on top of her. In court, he tried to say that he had difficulty because of the size of his penis. He seemed to have ignored the victim saying “no”!

“The publishing group Pearson has come under fire in South Africa after one of its school textbooks suggested a rape victim was at fault for the crime.” 9 September 2016

Activity 9, the ‘Give Advice’ section in this book said “List two ways which Angie’s behaviour led to sexual intercourse.” This ‘education’ hasn’t changed the rape, it increased the rates. South Africa has the highest rape in the world. Ben Pearson, the director of policy at ActionAid International, said in his Twitter post that schoolchildren had to blame the female in order to pass the test.

“A doctor and a hospital attendant have been arrested for the alleged rape of a woman who was being treated at a top hospital in western India, a police officer said Friday.” 10 September 2016

In a ‘top hospital’ security appears to support the patients, but this is not the first time that patients in Indian hospitals have said they were raped. Last year 34,000 rapes were reported, but many more were not reported.

 “A Canadian federal judge is facing possible removal for asking the accuser in a 2014 rape trial: ‘Why couldn’t you just keep your knees together?’” 10 September 2016

Camp had already acquitted the man accused of rape after he had decided the testimony was more credible. He even said to the woman “Why couldn’t you just keep your knees together?” What the hell was he thinking??

“…the victim was sitting in the bus with other students when the accused sneaked up to her and touched her breasts. He then put his hand under her skirt and penetrated her 'digitally' using his fingers.” 10 September 2016

This man was released with a suspended sentence. Why on earth would court do that? Why wouldn’t court listen to the girl who had been assaulted?

Thank goodness that the UK city trader was jailed: “A City trader has been jailed for six years for raping a woman as she attempted to sleep under her desk after an office party.” How many other court cases will go ahead with a rape victim? How many courts will find the real accused guilty? WHY ISN’T THIS HAPPENING??

How can we educate boys and men against rape? We have many DV organisations – not government-supported – which tell us how. We have the NASAV (National Association of Services Against Sexual Violence) which tell us how. 

The pdf file (available online) from Dr Patricia Weiser Easteal, Senior Criminologist Australian Institute of Criminology, says: “Rape is not a sexual act. Rape is an act of violence which uses sex as a weapon.” Do we all agree with this? We should! Rape is an act of violence… EVERY man MUST know this!

This paper lists too many “myths” which men – and women - still believe in”

Myth: Rape requires physical force

Myth: Rape requires physical resistance by the victim

Myth: Rape requires a weapon

Myth: Rape is a sexual act

Myth: Since rape is primarily a sexual act, the victim in some way may precipitate the offence through arousing the male in some provocative manner

Myth: Since rape is provoked by a female, it is commonly a spontaneous act

Myth: Aboriginal women (or Afro-American women in the USA) are more highly sexed than 'white' women and, therefore, are always willing to have sex; thus they precipitate rape by their sexual behaviour

Stupid. Real. Myths. Read this to find out why!

In 1993 Walker wrote that women would not report a rape by a person she knew because she was afraid by what police would think. This happened far too many years in the past – I certainly thought that in 1973 when I was raped by five “friends”. Why should I have reported it to police? Why did I stay there? Why did I say it was rape when I didn’t even leave? Yadda yadda yadda… Yes, it was definitely rape. If I had reported the rape, and if it had been treated legitimately, I should have had justice from that event. Unfortunately, too many women who do take their rape to court don’t have justice even today. Too many police or court judges just don’t believe women. Even today.

Camp, a federal judge in Canada, is – hopefully – being treated the way he should be now. He should be fired. He should be held responsible for his stupidity, the acquittal of the man who actually did rape.

NO police person, NO judge, should disbelieve women who complain about rape. Every rape case should be listened to. Every woman who complains should be believed before the trial. Every man who raped should not be allowed to say that his future life is in trouble from his ‘20 minutes’.

Trouble is, I don’t believe that will happen.

At least, not this decade.

Rape Culture

Blessington. When he was 14, this man raped and killed Janine Balding. He was locked up in the jail for his entire life. And he is asking for “clemency”. Why isn’t that good?

For me, how it ends up is good. He should never be set free. He can just rot away in this jail for what he did to Janine Balding, and the grief he caused to her family. When I read the history I cried. I thought about my own rape, the rape of Jyoti in India, the rape of so many women. “Clemency”? He should never receive “clemency”!

Rape happens… every… single… day.

Too many women are murdered.

Too many women are “blamed”.

Too many women become mentally ill when they try to live with their memories.

Too many women have to live with it.

Women don’t report it because they don’t trust courts to believe them. Why not? Because men can just say that they “loved her”. Or they didn’t “touch her”. Or they were “taught to be nice to her”.

I read an extremely wrong article by “Dr” Tara J. Palmatier who supported “A Voice for Men” to turn against “Rape Culture”. Palmatier knows nothing about women who were raped by men. Who were very hurt by the insertion of … a metal stick (Jyoti) or a bayonet (me) during rape. Who was killed because the men (boys) thought that would finish whatever for them! FFS, get real “Dr” Palmatier!!!

 

Any man jailed for rape might adhere to rape by men. Why are they being raped? Because the men who conduct this crime think they have the crime which the men already committed. Why isn’t that in court? Because the men who claim they have been raped already raped a woman!!!

This Time article on 20 March 2014 says that “rape culture” doesn’t exist. I wonder if the woman who wrote this understands what has happened in the last 40 years? Valenti said “Rape-culture theory is doing little to help victims, but its power to poison the minds of young women and lead to hostile environments for innocent males is immense.” Oh how much I really wish that 40 years ago I could have reported my rape to police and expected the disgusting men to end up in jail! Nowadays? YES, I could expect that! That is not a culture, it’s a law, and must be kept alive!

 

Ending “rape culture” will not end rape. Ending “rape culture” will not assist women who are raped. Ending “rape culture” will not, ever, lock a man into jail for the rest of his life because the anti-rape-culture society think he did something small wrong and has paid for it and needs to start a new life!

What about women who are raped? Will they ever start a “new life”? They can, only if rape is seen to be a backwards “culture”. They can, only if they can expect the law to back them. They can, only if the disgusting rapists are locked away, hopefully for the rest of their lives! That is a law, and must be kept alive!

Ask any woman who was raped!

Survey - Violence Against Women in Australia

In 2012 the Bureau of Statistics (ABS) conducted a Personal Safety Survey for sexual violence which happened far too often to women. The long (148) report was done by ANROWS in October last year, and looked at "substantial new findings and several hundred new statistical items related to physical assault, sexual violence, intimate partner violence, and multiple victimisation.". 

There is a pdf file which you can download from ANROWS which can be very helpful to you. It looks at the experience of violence, most recent experience of violence, selected types of violence, sexual assault, partner violence, emotional abuse and much more.

The Australian Institute of Criminology looks at the trend of sexual assault, but it only reached 2007 in its data. However, by 2007 there had been an increase of 400 per month since 1995, and that's bad (scary?) information. 

Every person, female or male, should be educated into what causes sexual violence. Every woman should know that they have rights. Every man should know that a "normal life" is never violence / sexual assault / rape / victimisation. 

Women deserve a normal life. It's our life.