opinions // 20 5 Fe Vaey ma! oyge tes Jian Ghomeshi and the case for reporting sexual assaults » Regardless of the details, we should not judge or shame alleged victims Angela Espinoza News Editor Minews 4 @theotherpress.ca QO: October 26, ex-host and co-creator of CBC Radio’s Q, Jian Ghomeshi was fired following allegations of sexual violence from three anonymous women. As more details have trickled out, the Ghomeshi case has become difficult for me to stomach. It’s important to remember that none of the information provided thus far reveals the whole story. All we know is Ghomeshi was fired, and a growing number of nameless : women have publicly accused : him of physical and sexual : assault. The three women who : initially came forward : apparently had previous : meetings with Ghomeshi. : Throughout 2014, they had : been working with the Toronto : Star, providing accounts on : their negative experiences : with him. The women alleged : that on separate accounts, : Ghomeshi was violent towards: : them during both pre-arranged : : and non-consensual sexual : encounters. After Ghomeshi was fired, he took to Facebook : with a post stating that the : allegations were from “a jilted : ex-girlfriend” and that outside : information was part of a : smear campaign against him. : At this time, nine women have : come forward, two apparently : ex-CBC co-workers and one : being Trailer Park Boys actress : and Royal Canadian Air Force : Captain Lucy DeCoutere—the : only alleged victim to reveal : her name. As of October 31, Toronto : police are looking into reports : made by DeCoutere and one other victim. From my own : experiences, I can say that : the women’s initial choice of : revelation was not surprising; : for those only reporting to : police now, the decision : was likely not made without : considering the vast amount of : public support they've received. : : : Ghomeshi has done all that : he’s been accused of, the fear of : receiving the public defamation : these women have already : experienced anonymously is : what kept them silent for so : long. With all that said, no : victim of sexual or physical : assault should ever feel they : need to be silenced, and this : entire situation should serve : as another example to change : our victim-shaming society. : To those now approaching the : police, I’m devastated they felt : they needed to wait until now, : but applaud them for finding : the strength. The women claimed : that they were physically : assaulted. Some of them, as : Ghomeshi and the women have : stated, consented previously, : not expecting him to be as : aggressive as he allegedly was. : Others have stated they were : frightened and consented : to various acts to keep the : violence from escalating : further. In addition, all of these : women have come forward : long after Ghomeshi allegedly : attacked them, 10 years later : in DeCoutere’s case. Assuming : their situations are as revealed, : they may not all have enough : evidence to seek court cases theotherpress.ca : out of their situations. But whether or not » Ghomeshi controversy belongs in court, not in public opinion Patrick Vaillancourt Senior Columnist exual assault is no laughing matter, and perpetrators of this crime ought to be punished. The accusations against ex- CBC radio host Jian Ghomeshi are quite compelling, and the specifics of each allegation make clear that Ghomeshi was not as careful as he had claimed : : Star is reporting that the : earliest of these victims was : attacked in 2002), Ghomeshi : has been free to assault : women, when realistically one : complaint to the police could : have potentially deterred his : criminal behaviour or, better : yet, landed him in prison. about consent. What bothers me is, if he actually did the things he is being accused of, why wasn't he labelled a sex offender years ago? Sexual assault is a heinous crime, which has no place in our society, and these victims have done a disservice by not reporting it to the police. If the allegations against Ghomeshi : are indeed true, the proper : place for him isn’t behind a : microphone—it’s behind bars. It honestly baffles me that sO Many women, nine thus : far, have kept this quiet for so : long. The number of sexual : assault victims did not have : to be this high. Nine women : and not a single one of them : initiated the involvement of : law enforcement. In a period that spans 12 years (the Toronto Instead, all of these women have bypassed our criminal : justice system, keeping quiet : about the alleged assaults they : have suffered. Only now, as : things are coming to light, are : they coming forward with their : stories. The desire to bypass the criminal justice system : is evident in the case of one : victim in 2013, in which the : unidentified woman indicated : to Ghomeshi via email that : she might “go public” with : her story. Whatever “go : public” means, there does : not appear to be a record of : police involvement. There : was, however, a now-infamous : XOJane article written by Carla : Ciccone about a creep believed : to be Ghomeshi. While the accusers have been successful at embarrassing : : Ghomeshi, the victims here : fail to realize that men in : these kinds of situations tend : to bounce back from scandals : such as these. Al Gore is still : one of the most respected : voices for climate change in : the world; Semyon Varlamov : still plays goal for the Colorado : Avalanche; and Woody Allen : is still an admired filmmaker. : Ghomeshi will likely follow suit, : : probably after he writes another : : bestselling book. I understand the apprehension some women : have in reporting sexual : assaults to police, but nothing : will change if they unilaterally : decide to not report the crime. : Had it been reported earlier, : some of these victims might : have been spared the indignity : of their own episodes with Ghomeshi. Society, but in particular : our criminal justice system, : : requires a better understanding : : of sexual assault. Obviously : the way in which Canadian : law prosecutes this crime : is unjust to its victims. The : general public also needs to : bea bit more sympathetic and : understanding to sexual assault : victims and drop the whole “she had it coming” rubbish. A public relations war will : only go so far, and Ghomeshi’s : initial Facebook statement was : purely an attempt for him to get : out in front of the story. He's : only going to keep defending : himself and those who choose : to support his version of events : will continue to staunchly : defend him. Ghomeshi is : going to play the same public : relations game his accusers : have launched, and while it isn’t : fair, he’s probably going to come : out on top.