She was raped' has become a phrase that I am starting to come across far too often.
As raw and uncomfortable as this first sentence may sound, it's a disturbing reality affecting women every day.
As a 19-year-old, every time I hear a young woman raped, I can't help thinking, will one of my friends be next? Will someone I know be next? Will I be next?
Every time a woman or girl is sexually assaulted, it breaks me to know that more often than not, many perpetrators walk scot-free because of the flawed justice system.
As a script writer, a couple of weeks ago I heard of a story in which a woman was raped, which inspired me to write a short film on the effects of sexual assault.
As I took up the assignment, I decided to research more on rape and the stories I heard from people I spoke to were simply heartbreaking
Where the contexts may differ, and scenarios may vary, questions arise and mostly the victims get bashed. Many ask ignorant questions such as: What was she wearing? Was she drunk?
This takes away the severity of the perpetrators actions and results in victim-blaming — an attitude that suggests a victim rather than the perpetrator bears responsibility for the assault.
However, when I recently heard of a seven-year-old who was raped, I realised that this was never an issue of 'she was drunk' or 'she was wearing revealing clothes', instead, it proved that some men have no respect for women and see them as objects that can be used for their own pleasure.
I believe that as a country, we should do more to protect young women and the future of this country.
We need to teach boys and men who see violence and dominance as ‘strong’ and ‘male’ that being a man means “respecting women”.
I implore the government to ensure the safety of women, set up safe houses and introduce more punitive laws on perpetrators.
Girls across the country are silently suffering, and we can change that.
