Is it my business?
Participant 1: Oh, if it's my business. [...] It's like, if I'm in the right place to help, if I am the right person to talk to [...] and if the person is sure [pause] they were assaulted, then we have to seek counselling for that.
Facilitator: That's the advice you would give?
Participant 1: Yeah, seek counselling, because you have to deal with the mental, psychological implications of the assault before we can deal with the respondent. [...] Also, I will think about if the person is certain [about experiencing sexual assault].
Recommendations
-
Provide long-term support to victims/survivors through university services and/or through referals to external community-based agencies.
-
Ensure all sexual violence prevention and response education and training opportunities actively deconstruct victim-blaming, rape myths and gender norms. Ensure these sessions take an intersectional approach to understanding sexual violence and supporting victim/survivors.