The sexual harassment and rape allegations made by some 20 women against former Democrat Party deputy leader Prinn Panitchpakdi has once again raised the murky subject of rape culture in Thailand.
While Prinn resigned from all party posts to fight mounting accusations against him and is innocent until proven guilty by a court of law, the fact of the matter remains that our laws lack a definition of what constitutes sexual abuse and harassment, or for that matter victimisation, putting survivors at a disadvantage.
In light of this, Life spoke with Pol Lt Col Peabprom Mekhiyanont, deputy superintendent of cyber crimes against children, to give her take on rape culture, the police approach towards such cases, and why survivors continue to remain reluctant to come forward.
Having previously worked in the investigation and inquiry affairs department, Lt Col Peabprom said it is often an emotional travail for survivors of sexual assault to report the incident to the police in male-dominated societies, Thailand included, because they are often blamed for bringing it on themselves.
"Coming forward with rape charges against a man already takes a lot of guts, and when the accused holds social status the pressure builds all the more," she said.
"That is why the tendency is for many of the survivors to report the incident to the police after a significant period has elapsed, as we see in the case of Prinn's accusers. When the alleged perpetrator holds a position of importance in society, it can become all the more difficult for victims to not just report the incident to law enforcement but convince society, especially netizens who are quick to judge, that the sex was not consensual."
On the role of social movement campaigns against sexual violence and sexual assault, Lt Col Peabprom said they should play a greater part in being there for the survivor at her most vulnerable moment.
"What the Prinn case has done is highlight the #MeToo movement which encourages survivors to take the courageous step to speak out, and to know they are not alone in this fight. Their voice can indeed help end the culture of silence, and assist in stopping sexual violence and harassment from occurring to others.
"Having closely followed such social campaigns, I believe they should participate more tangibly, walking closely with survivors during their ordeal to seek justice."
Thailand is suffering from an acute rise in domestic violence cases, said Lt Col Peabprom, and the reason could very well be in part to rape culture which flourishes in nations that suffer from gender violence issues, while the patriarchal social structure enforces systematic subordination which offers little course of action for survivors of sexual crimes.
"While cases continue to rise, it is rather unfortunate that we have done little to educate people about the legal recourse they can take when bringing perpetrators to justice in such incidents. Lack of legal information can lead to a culture of silence, which we often see happen in Thailand. The chatbot Mysis, which I initiated, has largely helped survivors of gender-based violence to prepare what they need to report their incident to the police. After Prinn's alleged sexual harassment and rape allegations were brought to light, I plan to add information about the rights survivors have that can be used when they report the incident to the police.
"[If you are particularly from a middle-class background] the justice process can be a solitary one because rape survivors are stigmatised in Thai society. The fact for many such survivors is that they stand to lose money and time and suffer mental health issues from reporting the crime, while there is no guarantee that the sacrifices they make during the process will give them true justice in a court of law."
Lt Col Peabprom said that to make inroads there had to be a greater focus on educating boys about sexual consent and empowering girls to speak up when wronged, even if the perpetrator is a public figure or someone that yields significant power in society.
When this is not deemed a priority in society as a whole, what follows next is that sexual violence is treated as a norm, creating multiple hurdles for rape survivors to receive justice.
"Rape culture is about male dominance. It's not just about sexual violence itself, but about cultural norms and institutions that protect perpetrators, and in some cases even promote impunity and shame of survivors. The pressure is on the woman to conform to avoid sexual assault, instead of teaching young boys to respect girls. We have often campaigned about these issues, but the sad scenario is that there is public sympathy only when high profile cases such as that of Prinn and others are in the media spotlight, after which the enthusiasm pretty much dies down.
"In my 14 years with law enforcement, sadly I have not seen any real improvement in the manner with which we tackle such cases. What we see is rape culture thriving in passive acceptance of female degradation, victim-blaming and hyper-masculinity in our communities. Due to this, sexual abuse cases are often not given importance. One indication comes from the fact that the stats we keep don't reflect the reality of the problem it has become.
"On the Mysis chatbot, we found that 90% of the time survivors reach out to the chatbot for information because first responders at the police station don't do their job. Gender-based violence cases, even when reported, are often put on the back burner because they are just not prioritised and it will continue to be this way as long as we live in a male-dominated society that condones such behaviour and women continue to remain repressed. It is a slap in the face of law enforcement that survivors opt to ask for help from the media and lawyers popular on social media, rather than the organisation that is there to protect them. This is very unfortunate, but the reality is that only cases that are covered in the media are often prioritised."
While Lt Col Peabprom admitted that it is disheartening to work in such an environment, which requires not just teamwork but being empathetic, she is happy to report that a group of female officers are hoping to make a difference by helping organise training for first responders at police stations.
"I have to confess that most male officers are ill-informed about the information they should be giving women that report a sexual offense at the police station. Survivors have to know their rights, they have to know that there are government hospitals with units designated for sexual abuse cases and more. This vital information is often not shared because the officers themselves don't know.
"The male officers' attitude during this interaction can also become flippant, which leads to the revictimisation of the woman. We are creating channels for such officers, together with police hotline operators, to be trained by psychologists and psychiatrists so they can better emphasise and deliver services that will tangibly benefit the survivors. With such training, my hope is those first responders will become caring and understanding towards survivors, that they will have a change in their mindset and attitude towards these cases.
"I believe when they are better equipped with the knowledge they receive from mental health experts, they will understand the need to treat survivors of gender-based violence with greater empathy. These training sessions will also offer them above other things knowledge about what the survivors are undergoing mentally, and how each emotionally deals with the incident."
