OF COURSE it was a joke. But nobody’s laughing.
During the 49th Charter Day celebration of Mandaue City, President Duterte commented that rape cases are always expected to happen in places with many beautiful women, as in the case with his beloved Davao City which has the highest number of rape cases in the country for the second quarter of 2018.
The Center for Women’s Resources, a 35-year research and training institution for women, says the President’s recent remark promotes and normalizes the culture of victim-blaming. It is not only wrong but also inaccurate to claim that rape only happens in places where there are beautiful women. Rape can happen anywhere, to anyone, at any time. In 2017, based on the 2016 Philippine National Police (PNP) data, 74 percent of the reported 9,943 rape cases were committed against children.
The President adds more burden to women by shifting the blame to them. Rape is a crime and it is not something that should be used to reaffirm the value of women. Women and children are raped because there are rapists, not because they invited people to rape them.
Here’s the thing, in the past both President Duterte and former PNP chief Ronald Dela Rosa claimed that drug addicts are those behind the most gruesome rape-slay cases in the country, thus the war on drugs is instrumental in addressing the rising number of rape cases.
Using the same logic, does this mean that war on drugs in the hometown of the President is a failure? Shouldn’t the public be alarmed with that?
The President is notorious for his misogynistic remarks. In the past, he had made jokes about rape and violence against women during official government functions, while delivering presidential speeches before the public. This recent attack against women does not surprise us at all, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be bothered.
The public need not accept them, no matter how frequent these are given; they should instead be enraged by it every time. We should always rebuke these remarks and constantly stand against misogyny and tyranny.
