Pacific women want apology over rape comments
An author and Pacific women's advocate says the Samoan National Council of Churches' chairman should apologise for the comments he made about rape.
Transcript
An author and Pacific women's advocate says the Samoan National Council of Churches' chairman should apologise for the comments he made about rape.
The chairman, Deacon Kasiano Le'aupepe, has urged women to bite men who sexually assault them as failing to do so could be interpreted as girls enjoying or agreeing to the attack.
He has also blamed the erosion of Christian values for the increase in sex attacks, saying there is too much emphasis on education, sports and human rights in Samoan society.
Lani Wendt Young says her response to his comments, which was published in the Samoa Observer newspaper, has ignited a healthy debate on the issue of rape culture.
Ms Wendt Young told Mary Baines it is almost a good thing the comments were made, as there is a mindset around rape in Samoa and beyond that needs to be addressed.
LANI WENDT YOUNG: He is speaking from a certain mindset. He's saying things that actually many people think and feel. Not just in Samoa and within Pacific cultures, it's not just a man problem. I think that while there have been many people who have been getting understandably upset about the chairman's comments, there also have been women who are supporting what he's saying and people saying 'This is how the men are in our culture' or whatever, and I think that's dangerous. I think that's a poor excuse.
MARY BAINES: So you're saying that there are issues that need to be addressed with the mindset around this.
LWY: Definitely I think it's a mindset that needs to be addressed because for us being Samoan women, I think there are many things that come into play that stop us from talking and speaking out, either when these things happen to us or even when we're confronted with these issues happening to other people. Because there's elements of shame, there's concerns about how hour families will look, and how it will reflect on the wider family that we belong to. Yeah, so it's important to have these conversations and start talking about this stuff.
MB: Do you think that he needs to make an apology?
LWY: I would hope. I would love to see him make an apology or rethink and revisit some of the things that he said. Because reading through his complete interview when he was talking about sexual abuse and rape in Samoa, there were some excellent points. I think that when he talked about how we need to strengthen our families and parents to take a greater role in our children's lives, I think those things are important, but for all the women, particularly those who have lived through abuse and rape, it's personally offensive and damaging to hear these things coming from someone in a position like his, a position of leadership and of great influence.
MB: Perhaps this will ignite a lot of public discussion about mindsets and rape culture.
LWY: I think so. And perhaps in a way it's almost a good thing that this has come out. I'm getting a lot of messages and emails from women who have read his comments and also read my response. And a lot of them are now sharing their own personal stories, being rape survivors. And I think there's healing in that and strength and it's empowering for us to be able to talk about those things. So hopefully some positive stuff can come out of this.
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