RECENT HAPPENINGS IN NIGERIA: UNDERSTANDING SEXUAL ASSAULT, RAPE, AND THE CONCEPT OF CONSENT

The world, like a mountain top, has been on fire for quite some time now, it is not news. While the world faces the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, other pandemics which the human race has battled for years unending continue to ravage it; racism, violent killings and rape. In just a few days there has been reported rape of a 12 year old girl, Farishina, by 11 men in Jigawa state, and the brutal rape and murder of a 22 year old Uniben student, Uwa, in Benin city; both cases in Nigeria. These terrible occurrences have sparked outrage across the nation, with many taking to both the literal streets and the virtual streets of social media to express displeasure and ensure the perpetrators of these vile acts do not escape the long arm of justice.

Amidst the outrage, a lot of women have courageously come forward to share their stories of rape, assault and harassment on various social media platforms. What is most disheartening in all of this is that a lot of people still do not understand sexual assault, rape, the concept of consent and have proven themselves to be rape apologists by making lewd, inappropriate and downright unacceptable comments in response to these stories. A huge part of society has a lot to learn, unlearn and re-learn as regarding these sensitive issues which have caused so much uproar and left a lot of hearts heavy.

What is sexual assault?
Sexual assault is an act in which a person intentionally sexually touches another person without his/her consent, or coerces or physically forces a person to engage in sexual act(s) against their will. It is a form of sexual violence which includes rape, groping, child sexual abuse or the torture of a person in a sexual manner.
Rape is a form of sexual assault. “EDITORIAL GIVEAWAY” It is a violent crime involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out on a person without the person’s consent. Forms of rape include:

Aggravated rape: This is a sexual assault that maims, wounds, or disfigures the victim, or involves a victim who is physically or mentally incapacitated. It may also include a sexual assault that is aided or abetted by another person, occurs during commission of another crime, or involves use of a deadly weapon.
Acquaintance rape: This is rape that is perpetrated by a person who knows the victim. A common form of acquaintance rape is date rape.
Incest rape: This is rape in which the perpetrator is related to the victim by blood, by affinity (marriage or stepfamily), adoption, clan, or lineage.
Diminished capacity rape: This is rape committed when one person forces sexual penetration on another person who cannot consent to the sex act. People with diminished capacity can not consent to sexual acts due to limited physical or intellectual ability. An example would be a person with an intellectual disability. Diminished capacity rape also takes place when a person has no ability to consent to sexual acts due to intoxication, unconsciousness, or sleep.
Age-related rape: This type of rape is often known as statutory rape as specified both in federal and state law. In this case, sexual actions with a person below a minimum age is considered illegal in all cases. This age is often 12. However, sexual acts with a person above the minimum age but below the age of consent may be considered rape depending on the perpetrator.
Partner/ spousal rape: This is a type of rape involving a person’s partner or previous partner (no matter whether the partners are married). The perpetrator could be a spouse, a romantic partner or a sexual partner.

The key word in sexual assault and rape is “consent” and yes, it also applies within the confines of dating relationships and marriages. Any form of sexual acts or sexual penetration carried out on a person who has not willingly and consciously agreed to it is considered as an assault.

Consent means the voluntary agreement of the complainant to engage in sexual activity without abuse or exploitation of “trust, power or authority”, coercion or threats. Consent can also be revoked at any moment. Sexual consent plays an important role in defining what sexual assault is, since sexual activity without consent by all parties is considered rape.

What are the rules of sexual consent?

Consent must be clearly communicated. Putting on revealing clothes, flirting, “coming or sleeping over”, accepting a free ride or drink, being nice or friendly is not equal to consent. A person who has not said yes has not given consent.
There is no room for assumption here. Yes is yes. No is no. Maybe is maybe. Do not assume that they mean one thing by saying another. Do not assume that they need to be persuaded or given a little push.
Consent can be withdrawn at anytime. A person who has given consent initially may choose to withdraw it before the act begins or in the middle of it.
A drunk/high person, a person who is asleep or unconscious cannot give or receive consent.
A person who is pressured, coerced or threatened has not given consent. Consent must be freely and not fearfully given.
A child cannot give consent. Moreover, Nigeria’s age of consent is 18 years, therefore sexual activity with a person below that age should be and is considered rape.
It is a person’s responsibility to ask for consent. If one’s partner looks uncomfortable, they probably are and it is an obligation to ask if they want to go further, whether they speak up or not.
A person must be well aware of the sexual acts that are intended to be carried out and has the right to agree to some of them while disagreeing to others. Agreeing to be kissed doesn’t mean they want their tops taken off.

To understand consent in simple terms, use the FRIES acronym- Freely given, Reversible, Informed, Enthusiastic and Specific.

As mentioned earlier, the most disheartening part of all this is the fact that in this day and age, there are still people who make excuses for rape and sexual assault: rape apologists. A rape apologist is a person who:

– defends acts of rape, usually by claiming that rape is not a serious crime or that people do not need to give consent to sex.

-suggests that women may be able to take precautions to reduce their chances of being raped, such as carrying a concealed weapon for self defense or avoiding places where crime is likely while alone at night.

-claims a victim of rape is the one at fault for an assault, most commonly using excuses such as “What were they wearing?” “Why were they out so late at night?” “They should have just allowed him have his way.” “She was asking for it.” “Why didn’t they fight back?” “Why are they just speaking up?” “Men get raped too.”

Rape Apologists ultimately blame/shame the victim, implying that the victim is somehow at fault for being assaulted. How is person to blame for being robbed and then shut up or have their suffering invalidated when they speak up? This often involves directly or indirectly justifying the action of the rapist, making them walk away scot-free and move on to assault more victims. It as well leaves the victim stigmatized and having to deal with the physical, psychological and emotional trauma of both assault and shaming.

Effects of rape and sexual assault

Physical effects including bleeding, bruising, organ rupture and tear (in children), soreness, pregnancy which can result in unsafe abortions, VVF in cases where teenagers have to give birth, eating disorders, sexual dysfunction, sexually transmitted diseases and infections, and death.
Psychological effects including post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), anxiety, depression, substance abuse, self-harming, flashbacks, nightmares, insomnia, suicidal thoughts and attempts.
Emotional effects including guilt, shame, self-blame/ self-hate, low self-esteem, fear, lack of trust, relationship difficulty, shock and denial.

The sexual assault and rape issue is deeply rooted in the rape culture. A lot of perverse things have become so normalized in the society that they are not seen as issues that need to be addressed. Consequently, these smaller issues lead to the bigger ones.

Rape culture is a sociological concept for a setting in which rape is pervasive and normalized due to societal attitudes about gender and sexuality. Behaviors commonly associated with rape culture include victim blaming, slut-shaming, sexual objectification, trivializing rape, denial of widespread rape, refusing to acknowledge the harm caused by sexual violence, or some combination of these.

The rape culture has four levels: Normalization, Degradation, Removal of autonomy and Explicit violence from bottom to top.

What can be done?

Seek justice: Rapists and all sex offenders must be punished accordingly for their crimes. They must be held accountable and made to face stiffer penalties.
Stop victim shaming/blaming: Victims are never to be blamed for being assaulted. Rape is 100% the rapist’s fault and it should be treated as such. Show empathy to victims of assault, whether they are your relatives or not.
End toxic masculinity and sexism: The belief that women were created as lesser beings or weaker vessels that must be dominated needs to be unlearnt. Women are human beings and have equal rights.
Be an active participant: Neutrality in the face of oppression is taking the side of the oppressors. Contribute in whatever way possible- make donations to an NGO that supports women, help survivors, sign petitions, take part in online/ on-ground protests, speak up against sexual assault and rape.
Stop rape jokes: There is nothing funny about rape, harassment or sexual assault. These are serious issues and making jokes about them is insensitive and inhumane. Rape jokes invalidate the suffering of victims.
Educate the coming generations on societal issues: Rape culture, gender stereotypes, patriarchal and sexist beliefs must be unlearnt. The language of consent and choice must be understood.
Sex education: The sex talk should not be limited to girls alone. Boys must be taught as well, and properly too. It is important that the source of information for young people is not left entirely to peer groups and the media where a lot of harmful content can be consumed.

Role of medics.
As future physicians, it is part of our duty to raise awareness on sexual assault, harassment and rape, as well as its adverse effects on the physical, emotional and psychosocial wellbeing of individuals. We need to be understanding, compassionate and sensitive when interacting with victims of assault. We should build a safe space and encourage people to feel confident enough to talk about issues of rape and sexual assault in all forms. We must also raise awareness on the importance of sex education through our various platforms.

False Rape Accusations
As much as victims of rape and sexual assault are encouraged to speak up, coming out with false accusations is completely unacceptable. False rape accusations can wreck a lot of havoc and it is terribly inhumane. Consequences of this can be anything from broken families or friendships, loss of jobs and endorsements, being arrested and spending jail time for a crime that was not committed, and adverse psychosocial effects. Apart from the fact that false rape accusations destroy lives on a deep level, they increase the likelihood that a person who reports rape will not be believed. It delegitimizes all rape and sexual assault reports, inadvertently counteracting all the efforts to bring about justice.

Sexual assault, harassment and rape in Nigeria
Nigeria has 5 specific laws that deal with rape: The Criminal code(CC), The Penal code(PC), The Criminal Law of Lagos(CLL), The Violence Against Persons Prohibition Act(VAPPA) and The Child Right Act(CRA). The first four laws hold in the southern states, northern states, Lagos, and Abuja respectively. According to these five laws, rape is punishable by life imprisonment upon conviction of the perpetrator(s). Attempted rape under the criminal code is 14 years imprisonment.

Furthermore, there are several institutes that address issues of sexual assault and rape in Nigeria, including the Nigerian Police Force, National Humans Right Comission and the National Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, amongst others.

Despite the fact that Nigeria has laws and institutions put in place to address rape and ensure justice, majority of rape cases end with the perpetrators walking away with little or no repercussions for their actions. This is due to a number of reasons:

The culture of rape, stigmatization, gender inequality, religious and societal norms and customs have silenced victims from speaking up, leaving their abusers to roam free.
Ineffectiveness on the part of the appropriate agencies to investigate sexual assault and rape claims, and apprehend sex offenders.
Poor implementation of sexual assault, harassment and rape laws.
An inefficient legal and justice system that has often failed to ensure conviction of sex offenders and maximum punishment upon conviction.

In conclusion, our bodies are our only true possessions. No one should feel entitled to someone else’s body. Sexual assault, harassment and rape are despicable criminal acts that rob a person not only of their bodies but of their right to freedom of speech, right to freedom of choice and sometimes their right to life. Nobody deserves to go through this, rape is never the victim’s fault and no one is to blame except the rapist. We must all play our parts as members of the society to ensure true freedom. Sex offenders must face the consequences of their actions. Empathy must be shown. Our voices must be heard. We can do better. We must do better.

Asekome Naomi Aimanosi, Medicine/Surgery, 400levelA. Naomi is a blogger at https://notsorandomthoughtscom.wordpress.com

References

https://www.healthyplace.com/abuse/rape/types-of-rape-the-different-forms-of-rape https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aggravated_sexual_assault https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Consent https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.urbandictionary.com/define.php%3fterm=Rape%2bapologist&amp=true https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rape_culture

Nimsa Scora infographics on Rape and Sexual assault