Written by Mariam Moktar
Were we surprised that Robengah, the Indonesian maid at the centre of the ‘alleged’ rape by a Malaysian Cabinet Minister would retract her statement? No. We half expected it.
Yesterday, Prime minister Najib Abdul Razak queried the timing of this rape allegation. He said, “In any case, what happened was in 2007. The question is, why (bring it up) now?”
Lo and behold, the following day, the maid who once worked for Rais Yatim denied that the Information, Communication and Culture Minister had ever raped her in the eight years of service with him.
What perfect timing!
Perhaps the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Migrant Care report that was circulating cyberspace was just a figment of our imaginations.
According to Kompas, an Indonesian daily newspaper, Migrant Care said that it was unable to bring the matter to justice unless Robengah makes a police report.
“She has refused to come forward to lodge a complaint since yesterday. Hence, we cannot bring the matter to justice. We need a report before we can take further action.
However since yesterday the victim has not been willing to come forward. We respect her decision.”
Migrant Care has since said that the experience will be used to strengthen the human rights of migrant workers.
“In this case, we may not want to take further legal action, but to use the issue to educate both governments on the necessity to respect human rights, especially the protection of migrant workers.”
The Indonesian newspapers - Kompas, Jakarta Post, Tempo, Jakarta Globe and news portal Detik.com only covered Rais’s denial whilst others refused to name the victim.
Migrant Care said that the Indonesian government was unable to initiate an investigation as the victim had first to file a report.
“The government cannot do anything as a report is needed in order to protect the victim under the Eyewitness and Victim Protection Programme.”
Migrant Care also denied that compensation had been paid to the victim following the issue.
He said, “She only received what is rightfully her wages. There were no problems with her salary. Since the report surfaced in 2007, we have not been in contact with the minister.”
“What is important is the condition set by the victim that she live in peace and is back in Indonesia. There is no other thing which we can do.”
The NGO reported that it was not fearful of repercussions or threats from the Malaysian minister following the revelation because its report was not intended to be published outside Indonesia.
Whilst we, and the NGO, should respect the victim's request, we must be mindful that there have been too many occasions, in the past, when allegations made against high-profile Malaysians have not been tested in court.
Studies have shown that contrary to popular belief, 2/3 of rapes are committed by someone who is known to the victim and that only 39% of rapes are reported to the police.
If a rape is reported, there is a 51% chance of an arrest.
If an arrest is made, there is an 80% chance of prosecution.
And with a prosecution, there is a 58% chance of a felony conviction.
Thus even in the 39% of attacks that are reported, there is only a 16% chance the rapist will go to prison.
In theory, there are laws to protest us. Too often, the victim is subject to intimidation. In the law’s view, a victim’s duty is to testify and prevent the attacker from striking again. But at what cost to her?
She has probably been made aware that the legal process could be long, arduous and the probability of securing a conviction may be low.
She might have been warned that her personal life will be picked over with a fine-toothed comb by a group of strangers.
Having been violated once, going to trial can seem like a second, state sanctioned rape.
She has already said she feared the long arm of Rais with his well-placed connections and ‘big money’ in Indonesia. So, Rais need not have paid anything to coerce her into retracting her rape charge.
All Rais had to do was start a whispering campaign about what to expect during the trial. For a poor village girl from deepest Indonesia, the trial process might seem too invasive.
It is probable that she and her family already face the disapproval of the other villagers. Gaining national notoriety might be too much for her.
Were we surprised that Robengah, the Indonesian maid at the centre of the ‘alleged’ rape by a Malaysian Cabinet Minister would retract her statement? No. We half expected it.
Yesterday, Prime minister Najib Abdul Razak queried the timing of this rape allegation. He said, “In any case, what happened was in 2007. The question is, why (bring it up) now?”
Lo and behold, the following day, the maid who once worked for Rais Yatim denied that the Information, Communication and Culture Minister had ever raped her in the eight years of service with him.
What perfect timing!
Perhaps the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Migrant Care report that was circulating cyberspace was just a figment of our imaginations.
According to Kompas, an Indonesian daily newspaper, Migrant Care said that it was unable to bring the matter to justice unless Robengah makes a police report.
“She has refused to come forward to lodge a complaint since yesterday. Hence, we cannot bring the matter to justice. We need a report before we can take further action.
However since yesterday the victim has not been willing to come forward. We respect her decision.”
Migrant Care has since said that the experience will be used to strengthen the human rights of migrant workers.
“In this case, we may not want to take further legal action, but to use the issue to educate both governments on the necessity to respect human rights, especially the protection of migrant workers.”
The Indonesian newspapers - Kompas, Jakarta Post, Tempo, Jakarta Globe and news portal Detik.com only covered Rais’s denial whilst others refused to name the victim.
Migrant Care said that the Indonesian government was unable to initiate an investigation as the victim had first to file a report.
“The government cannot do anything as a report is needed in order to protect the victim under the Eyewitness and Victim Protection Programme.”
Migrant Care also denied that compensation had been paid to the victim following the issue.
He said, “She only received what is rightfully her wages. There were no problems with her salary. Since the report surfaced in 2007, we have not been in contact with the minister.”
“What is important is the condition set by the victim that she live in peace and is back in Indonesia. There is no other thing which we can do.”
The NGO reported that it was not fearful of repercussions or threats from the Malaysian minister following the revelation because its report was not intended to be published outside Indonesia.
Whilst we, and the NGO, should respect the victim's request, we must be mindful that there have been too many occasions, in the past, when allegations made against high-profile Malaysians have not been tested in court.
Studies have shown that contrary to popular belief, 2/3 of rapes are committed by someone who is known to the victim and that only 39% of rapes are reported to the police.
If a rape is reported, there is a 51% chance of an arrest.
If an arrest is made, there is an 80% chance of prosecution.
And with a prosecution, there is a 58% chance of a felony conviction.
Thus even in the 39% of attacks that are reported, there is only a 16% chance the rapist will go to prison.
In theory, there are laws to protest us. Too often, the victim is subject to intimidation. In the law’s view, a victim’s duty is to testify and prevent the attacker from striking again. But at what cost to her?
She has probably been made aware that the legal process could be long, arduous and the probability of securing a conviction may be low.
She might have been warned that her personal life will be picked over with a fine-toothed comb by a group of strangers.
Having been violated once, going to trial can seem like a second, state sanctioned rape.
She has already said she feared the long arm of Rais with his well-placed connections and ‘big money’ in Indonesia. So, Rais need not have paid anything to coerce her into retracting her rape charge.
All Rais had to do was start a whispering campaign about what to expect during the trial. For a poor village girl from deepest Indonesia, the trial process might seem too invasive.
It is probable that she and her family already face the disapproval of the other villagers. Gaining national notoriety might be too much for her.
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