Sexual Violence, Sympathizers more of perpetrators.

Rape is a form of sexual assault, but not all sexual assaults is rape. The term rape is often used as a legal definition to specifically include sexual penetration without consent.

Sexual assault refers to sexual contact or behavior that occurs without explicit consent of the victim. Some forms of sexual assault include:
- Attempted rape
- Fondling or unwanted sexual touching
- Forcing a victim to perform sexual acts, such as oral sex or penetrating the perpetrator’s body
- Penetration of the victim’s body, also known as rape.

Sexual assault/rape can take many different forms, but one thing remains the same: it’s never the victim’s fault.

Most often we hear of sexual violence,  the term "sexual violence" is an all-encompassing, non-legal term that refers to crimes like sexual assault, rape and sexual abuse. A person raped like the case reported in Bamenda recently suffers the following
√. Blitz assault: this is  when a perpetrator quickly and brutally assaults the victim with no prior contact, usually at night or in a quiet place.
√. Psychological abuse (also referred to as psychological violence, emotional abuse, or mental abuse) is a form of abuse, characterized by a person subjecting, or exposing, another person to behavior that may result in psychological trauma, including anxiety, chronic depression, or post-traumatic stress disorder.

The above explains why we should protect the image of victims and rather expose perpetrators of such acts. Please desist from sharing the videos/images of the abused. Let us respect their dignity.

What to do when faced with a person who has been abused.
√. After a sexual assault,  you should help the person seek medical attention as fast as possible. This will help in checking and treating any possible injuries, STIs and pregnancy.

√. Report to Law Enforcement officers. Note that to fight it, we must speak out. But the manner or medium of speaking out matters.

√. Self-Care after trauma.
Whether it happened recently or years ago, self-care can help the abused cope with the short and long-term effects of a trauma like sexual assault.


We should join our voices to denounce all perpetrators of sexual violence.

                                       Ambe Macmillian A.