IN THE FIRST few days of 2021 the headlines were about the case of Christine Dacera. I must say may her soul rest in peace, but her case has been over-sensationalized.
It has drowned out all the other murders and tragedies happening around the country. It even merited promotion from Sen. Manny Pacquiao who wishes to bring back the death penalty.
Not only has it made headlines; it also spawned many conspiracy theories. First, it was rape-slay, then death by natural causes. Some people even think that the Dacera family is trying to push for a ârape-slayâ to get money from Christine´s life insurance.
This case has even more loose ends than a badly-written mystery novel. I was one of the people that initially jumped into the âit was rape!â bandwagon. Now, when I look into the details of the situation, I see that the Philippine National Police (PNP) just tried to make scapegoats for their sloppy investigation.
One thing that annoys me about some of the netizens, though, is that they are trying to use being a member of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community as an exemption to being involved in a rape case.
Now take note, I do not believe anymore that Christine was raped. I also think the four suspects are being wrongfully accused. However, being a member of the LGBT community does not mean you CANNOT be involved in a rape case.
Maybe you didnât directly touch the victim, but the fact that you were there and you aided somehow makes you accountable too.
I mean no disrespect. I have many friends who are LGBT and who I would trust with my life. The point I am trying to say is RAPE HAS NO GENDER. It doesnât matter what the sexual preference of the perpetrator, victim and accomplices are. It is not only limited to women or young boys who donât know any better. Rape is when you violate a personâs body. It is when you hurt them when they are most defenseless. It is a disgusting crime that must and can be prevented at all costs.
How do we prevent rape though?
Yes, stopping victim-blaming is one way to develop an anti-rape mindset. Sad to say though, no matter how many campaigns and posters we may place around, there will always be a number of the population who cannot comprehend what makes it so bad.
These are the people who never realize how important it is to respect another person. They, in turn, were probably violated in their youth, too.
We need to start at the beginning. In the formative years of a child. They need to be taught that every person has his/her own space, and intruding in on that space needs the consent of the latter.
They can´t just push the âlittle guyâ or lift the skirt of their classmates for fun and get away scot-free. They need to be taught to respect other peopleâs things. They mustnât take anything from their friends without permission, even the tiniest rubber band.
Lastly, they must be taught that the feelings of others matter. If their friend feels uncomfortable with what they are doing, then they must stop. It all boils down to empathy.
Over-censoring things also hinders a child´s understanding of what should and shouldn´t be done to their body. Be discreet about their parts and what those parts can do.
Donât treat sex like it´s a taboo topic. Neither rape. It is the same as children who grow up with overly strict parents. Once they have tasted freedom, they tend to abuse it and do stupid things due to ignorance.
It is nice to see that at least people are starting to make an effort to raise children with more respect for others. It may take a while but it takes the efforts of all. It doesnât matter whether you are religious, a feminist, vegan, heterosexual, LGBT(QIA), rich, poor, introvert, or extrovert. Anyone can be a victim of rape and anyone can be a rapist, too.
To conclude my rant, even though I believe Christineâs case is less and less likely rape, I hope we can all do our effort to try and prevent the next one./PN
