There's currently a rape case in Singapore that's been drawing some media attention due to the circumstances of the crime. A teenage girl was forced into sex by 5 guys (the age of all involved ranged from 17-19 years old). The core of the debate behind this issue basically is how much rape victims are to be blamed for their predicament. What do you think, in this case?
Quoted from a news article (which has since expired, but an alternate reporting of the story can be found here):
The boys wanted female company. The group leader got the girl’s number from one of the others and called her claiming to be a schoolmate. The victim accepted the invitation for supper and was surprised when she arrived at the apartment to find a group of guys she didn't know (only one of the five was known to her). After some reluctance, she agreed to enter the flat.
There they played drinking games and she consumed more than five shots of vodka. Her head was spinning and her vision impaired. In this state, after some pressure, she became aroused by the boy who kept hitting on her. She agreed to sex with him alone in the bedroom. When the two later emerged, she went to sleep off her stupor on a bench in the common area.
While she rested, she was carried back into the bedroom and stripped naked. Someone said “let’s start.” Then, over the course of the next two hours, each took their turn as they held her down... When they were done, ... [t]hey helped her wash up then gave her $10 for cab fare home.
Additional points: The court ruled it as aggravated assault of modesty in the end, a decision which outraged many people.
Was the victim to blame for letting herself end up in such a scenario? Or, as a website (link below) put it, '[t]he failure of a woman to adequately assess the risk of attack does not mean that she caused what happens and should take blame for it.' What do you think?
For anyone interested in this topic, here's a good argument for victim-blame in this case and here's one against.
FYI: This isn't my presentation topic, just thought it would be worth sharing, as I was just discussing about this with a friend. Cya all on Tuesday!
