** CONTENT WARNING: THEMES OF SEXUAL ASSAULT AND SUICIDE IDEATION **

In recent years, many young Women’s lives have been thoroughly shattered by several ill-famed sexual abuses that occurred online. In a society that regards sexual privileges as a bona-fide reserved right for men alone, this patriarchal mentality has empowered some men to engage in the immoral activity of posting nude pictures, videos, or sex tapes of Women without their consent with the intent of humiliating them publicly. It is imperative to note that there is a difference between revenge pornography and other forms of pornography. For one, revenge pornography is often distributed without the consent of the victim involved, even though it is often made by them or with their consent.

RECENT CASES

One would think that most people typically affected by this violence are average citizens, however celebrities, influencers and role models are also at the receiving end of image based abuse. This form of misogyny affects us all.In 2019, it was reported that a Ghanaian student almost committed suicide after her sex tape was leaked on the internet. Recent accusations have come to light from celebrity Tonto Dikeh against her ex-partner whom she claims was threatening to post nude pictures of her after their recent split. Also, Babcock university in Nigeria expelled female student over leaked sex tape.

Therefore, there is an urgent need for conversations with regards to making the internet safer for Women as research indicates that nonconsensual pornography causes a similar trauma experience to sexual assault. Lockdown during the rise of the coronavirus pandemic made internet and non-internet users very dependent on the web. Hence, revenge pornography which is described as a form of cyberbullying got worse during the lockdown phase of the pandemic.

#NoToRevengePorn campaign. Credit: Parent Zone

FORMS OF CYBERBULLY

Sexual abuses that have gained notoriety online include revenge porn, but also deep fakes and up-skirting. As the name denotes, deepfakes is when technology is used to copy videos or images from social media platforms and digitally alter them to make them appear pornographic. Also, up-skirting refers to taking a photo or filming underneath a skirt or dress of an unsuspecting Woman without her consent.

REVENGE PORNOGRAPHY IS VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN

Research shows that 90% of revenge porn victims are Women. Sadly, we live in a society where Women are given the sole responsibility of ‘preserving their dignity’ so when there is a case of revenge porn, victims are usually blamed and persecuted. Spreading and circulating nudes without consent violates trust, humiliates the other, destroys their reputation, relationships with others, job prospects, significantly affects their mental health and social and political standing within society.

Grace (Not real name) shared her experience as a revenge porn survivor,

“I was in my second year at university when it happened. We had a fight and some days later I broke up with him. When I told him I wasn’t interested in the relationship anymore, he begged endlessly, but I had made up my mind. One week later, I woke up to my friends sending me nude pictures and videos that I had sent to him while we were still dating. The pictures and videos circulated really fast, and I was scared that my parents may see them or worse, that I may be expelled. I wanted to report the matter to the police, but with the way everyone blames the victim, I was scared that the police would do the same. So, I didn’t, and just hoped everyone would forget about it eventually. That was a very painful experience in my life, I almost killed myself”.

The problems facing victims of revenge porn is the inability to report such cases like this to the relevant authorities, due to fear of reprisal. castigation or prolonged public ridicule. This is an act of misogyny. It’s about a deep hatred for Women, punishing and hurting them for being too trusting with intimate pictures and videos of themselves, knowing full well that the society will not defend or protect them. Revenge porn affects the rights of Women to dignity uniquely in a way men are not, which explains why the consequences are so dire for Women.

VICTIM BLAMING

Victim blaming is a phenomenon where the focus is shifted from the perpetrator of a crime, onto the victim to rationalize the occurrence of the specific crime – which primarily and solely affects Women. When domestic violence occurs, society shifts the focus on the perpetrator and asks the victim “Why didn’t you leave,” “Why didn’t you see the signs”. When rape occurs, the victim is also asked “What were you wearing?” This is not any different with revenge porn, society tends to shift the blame to the victim of the crime.

A crime has been committed when a person makes a conscious effort to betray the trust of another and intentionally post naked images or videos of them online to humiliate them and ruin their reputation. In this case the focus should be on punishing the perpetrator. When society blames the victim; it provides a shield of protection for the perpetrator, helping to deflect and dismiss their crimes. We make it seem like it’s okay to humiliate Women for having sex or sharing intimate pictures with a partner, which is a wholly sexist and regressive practice. It also breeds resentment between both genders when you tell Women it’s their fault for trusting men. This subtly encourages distrust in heterosexual relationships. The experience, isolation, unfair judgement, and victim blaming survivors go through often keeps them in endless trauma and upholds the patriarchal system that fails to punish men for abusing Women.

LEGAL STEPS

Many African countries have not yet criminalised such behaviour, which means many young Women who are victims are without access to justice, since current laws do not consider revenge porn illegal. However, things are slowly changing. South Africa, Nigeria, Ghana and a few other nations, have made provisions in the constitution against the publication of indecent and nude photos on the internet.

The Ghanaian government passed the Cybersecurity Act 2020 into law, thereby, criminalising the publication of indecent or nude photos of children. Also, the law punishes cyber activities involving sexual abuse of children and adults – including child grooming for sexual abuse or aiding and abetting, or cyberstalking of a child with five to 15 years in jail or payable fines of between $5200 and $10,000 (GH 30,000 to GH60,000).

Under the Nigerian legal system, The Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention) of Section 24 states that – “any message of an indecent, obscene or menacing character or one that is grossly offensive and pornographic shall be liable to a fine of not more than seven million naira or imprisonment for a term of three years or both.” Under the Act, there has been just one record of one conviction by the Court to date, of a jilted lover who, after unsuccessfully attempting to blackmail his former lover into paying a sum of money, uploaded her nude pictures online.

THE WAY FORWARD

The need to protect Women online and affirm a commitment to our safety is essential, because with the advent of technology and readily available technological tools, more people than before depend heavily on the internet where this menace occurs. Firstly, society needs to be educated on the diverse effects victim blaming has on survivors and unlearn previously held prejudice. Also, with the prominence of social media usage, the majority have little knowledge on what steps to take towards minimising the harm. A lot of education needs to take place – in schools, homes and workplaces.

Also, there is a need to implement a better legal framework for this crime which includes stricter laws with lengthy jail terms for perpetrators. It is imperative that sterner punishments should be given to those found guilty, as this would serve as a deterrent to would-be offenders.

Considering the effects which the unwanted sharing of these images cause to the victims, ranging from suicide to depression and endless trauma; victim support and therapy should also be made available. For example, organisations have been set up to help victims of revenge porn in Ghana and to educate people on it.

Written By: Deborah Dzifa Makafui – a budding young writer, author, student journalist, creative words-weaver, and a big lover of knowledge from Ghana. Her central niche lies in Journalism, but her interests cut across more than one field. You can read more of her writing here and connect with her here

Header Image: credit iAfrica