Singapore — Workers’ Party MP Raeesah Khan (Sengkang GRC) was questioned by Law Minister K Shanmugam in Parliament on Monday (Oct 4) regarding the details of a rape case that was allegedly mishandled by the police.
Ms Khan held her ground on maintaining the victim’s confidentiality. She previously said that she had lost contact with the victim and could not ask permission to disclose information.
On Tuesday, gender equality advocacy group AWARE commented on the matter, saying in a Facebook post that people who have been informed of a sexual assault, experienced by a survivor, have “certain ethical obligations regarding confidentiality.”
“Namely, without permission from the survivor, that information should not be shared with another party,” AWARE wrote.
Because many survivors of sexual assault experience a loss of autonomy, AWARE underlined that regaining a sense of control is significant to their recovery.
To share information without their consent, especially pertaining to the survivor’s identity, “would constitute yet another violation of that survivor’s consent.”
AWARE also wrote that its Sexual Assault Care Centre has helped when survivors reported to police wherein “insensitive and victim-blaming questioning” occurred.
The group acknowledged that the police has taken steps to improve their skills in dealing with sexual violence, calling this an example of “a crucial step forward for our justice system.”
But in Ms Khan’s case, since she is no longer in communication with the survivor and cannot obtain permission to share details of her assault, “it would not be ethical in our view for her to share further details that may lead to the survivor being identified (which is a reasonable assumption based on the police’s stated aims),” AWARE added.
On Aug 3, Ms Khan told the House that she accompanied a 25-year-old rape victim to a police station to make a report three years ago. She said that during the interview, the officer allegedly made inappropriate comments about the victim’s clothing and the fact that she was drinking.
The interview had ended with the victim, 25, leaving the police station crying, added Ms Khan.
Minister of State for Home Affairs Desmond Tan then asked Ms Khan for clarification regarding the details of the case, saying “We take any form of questions raised about how the police have handled or mishandled this case very seriously, and it should be investigated.”
In Parliament on Monday (Oct 4), Mr Shanmugam repeatedly called on Ms Khan to provide further details following her allegations. Ms Khan declined to furnish such information, citing the need for confidentiality.
The Law Minister said the police were not able to identify any case where Ms Khan was present with the victim.
“It is entirely possible that they didn’t note down Ms Khan’s name, but it is most important that the matter is not left hanging with doubt over what may or may not have happened,” he said.
Ms Khan responded by saying, “Like I said, it did happen three years ago and I haven’t been successful getting in touch with the person that I accompanied. And, you know, with regards to confidentiality, I would prefer for it to remain that way.”
Mr Shanmugam later said he would leave the matter for the time being, but added that the police will continue to investigate further. /TISG