Amid more molest & assault cases, Singaporean TikToker tells men, 'Don't enable weird behaviour'
SINGAPORE: In a recent video, a young local content creator noted how the number of molestation and rape cases have gone up this year.
From January to June, there were 762 cases of molestation and 261 cases of rape, The Straits Times reported in August.
However, as the TikToker @why.mca pointed out, these are only the cases that were actually reported, and in addition to the sexual assault cases, the actual number is likely to be much higher.
The 21-year-old asked if it has occurred to people that they may have actually crossed paths with a perpetrator of these types of offences. Addressing those in National Service, he surmised, “I don’t think it’s a stretch to say that someone in your camp is a sexual predator or is going to be one in the future. At least one.”
Therefore, we may have encountered such a person, or will do so one day, but we just don’t realise it, he added.
For him, it’s therefore high time to un-normalise certain types of social behaviour.
For example, if you have a friend who is always making jokes about assault or rape, you should ask why they are so casual about it, he said, particularly the men who have never denounced these crimes.
A predator, he added, is more likely to be someone who makes inappropriate jokes or is casual about the subject matter rather than someone who condemns these offences.
Importantly, he said that if a person has a friend who does not seem to understand what consent is, he hopes that person would take the time to educate them or call them out.
He then referred to the case at Cornell University in the United States, which has dominated the news across the globe over the past week or so.
The TikToker underlined that a similar situation could happen in Singapore, or may have already happened.
“So everyone please take care of your friends, and call out people who are being weird about this topic,” he added.
The video, which has been watched almost 96,000 times since it was posted on Oct 3, appears to have struck a chord with many.
Some users on the platform shared their stories.
“I got molested in school and reported it to both the police and the school. Where things end? HE GOT LET OFF WITH A WARNING. BRO, HE’S A GROWN ADULT, AND I’M JUST A MINOR??? ALL CAUSE HE KEPT DENYING S***,” one wrote.
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“I reported to the police and the perpetrator handwrote a letter admitting to it. Took the police 2 years to get back to me to say they can’t do anything about it. This is why nobody reports,” added another.
“I gave a lot of evidence for my rpe case. Text screenshots and even a location. They told me insufficient evidence, and the case was closed,” chimed in a third.
“Reported years ago… I was 13, he was 31, and the police mishandled my case and closed it without me knowing… till now nothing is done. Just prosecutor stage. It’s been years, and he’s still living his life freely… also, there is a chance nothing will happen to him,” a TikTok user shared. /TISG