Charged with what?

I read this article with a mix of bewilderment and anger.

In the first case of its kind here, a woman was charged in a district court on Friday with having consensual sex with her father.

The 22-year-old technical executive was accused of committing the offence in a flat in Serangoon in April 2008. MediaCorp understands that the pair was discovered after the daughter told a friend about the encounter. Shocked, the friend lodged a police report.

Apparently, under Section 376G, of Singapore's Penal Code, the woman can be charged and sentenced to a maximum of 5 years in prison. This is reported to be the first case of its kind in Singapore, which means there is no legal precedent until the judge rules on this case.

The entire case is bizarre, from the friend who called the police, to the woman saying it is consensual, missing relationship dynamics, etc, but the prosecutor chose to proceed anyway. The court date is set for April 12th, and I will be there to cover this. Ultimately, what Gayle Goh and Kenneth Jeyaretnam said on this Facebook discussion rings true:

Gayle Goh: While I affirm that consensual sex isn't really the government's business, the issue of consent becomes problematic when the daughter has grown up under the parental authority of the father. Not so easy to draw a dichotomy between consent and non-consent under those circumstances.

Kenneth Jeyaretnam: Children who are victims of incest and abuse still love their parents so it's very complicated ground emotionally. The father yes, but the victim? She needed counselling and support not being arrested and charged.

If the legal precedent is set, it further reinforce the notion that punishing the victim is a better direction than understanding and proper support. That will be a very sad day for this country.

(h/t: Donaldson Tan)

Comments

[the Rudder]

http://voixdeviant.wordpress.com/2010/03/31/the-rudder-incest-moral-panic-or-restricted-freedom/