Stopping sexual abuse

Sen. Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada | Voltaire F. Domingo/Senate PRIB

The Senate investigation into the alleged sexual harassment of an actor has forced the entertainment industry to confront its darker side in the open. But it has also exposed how victims of sexual abuse are treated, particularly by public servants who are expected to protect and respect their rights.

Sen. Jinggoy Estrada was criticized on social media for being harsh and insensitive to 23-year-old actor Sandro Muhlach who appeared via Zoom in a hearing of the Senate committee on public information and mass media last Aug. 19. The committee is looking into the policies of television networks and artists management agencies concerning sexual abuse and harassment complaints as an offshoot of the case Muhlach had earlier filed against Jojo Nones and Richard Cruz, independent contractors of GMA Network.

Muhlach, when prodded to share details of the alleged assault, hesitated, with his lawyer explaining that it was difficult for the actor to do so and that he had to muster courage just to appear before the committee. This appeared to have upset Estrada who threatened to walk out if Muhlach would not speak up. “Alam niyo, ‘pag hindi natin tatapusin ito, hahaba nang hahaba ito. You’re wasting our time here,” the senator said.

In the same hearing, another artist, Gerald Santos, also testified that he was sexually abused in 2005—when he was only 15 years old—by a musical director of the network. Santos was asked why it took him 19 years to come forward.

Blamed and shamed

Sexual abuse and harassment are a reality in the workplace, not only in the movie and TV industry. But victims often hesitate to come forward and instead choose to remain silent because they end up being blamed and shamed, or even lose job opportunities.

In the case of artists like Muhlach and Santos, they also have to relive their trauma before the public and, given the high-profile industry they work in, they will be identified with this for the rest of their lives. To be sure, they are not the first celebrities to come forward.

The Hollywood #MeToo movement, which gained prominence in 2017, raised awareness about the sexual harassment and abuse of women and extended the discussion beyond the entertainment industry to everyday life and ordinary people.

A few days ago, a program manager at TV5 was terminated over a sexual abuse complaint filed by a 22-year-old news researcher. These abuses, as Estrada, a former actor himself, acknowledged, have been “ongoing for so long” but only whispered and discussed in secrecy within the industry. Indeed, the Senate investigation is noteworthy because it brings into the open discussions about the abuses that happen behind the scenes and could promote awareness and vigilance in other workplaces.

Curiosity and hunger for gossip

However, those who lead such investigations must exercise sensitivity and undergo training on trauma to better handle such cases. After all, the Senate investigation is not meant to satisfy the public’s morbid curiosity and hunger for gossip and scandal, but—as stated in the committee’s briefer—to review the entertainment industry’s policies and mechanisms to address incidents or complaints of abuse and harassment and look at the potential criminal or civil liability of TV networks for abuses committed by affiliated artist management agencies.

In a broader sense, the investigation is also meant as a review of relevant laws including Republic Act No. 7877 (Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995), RA 11313 (Safe Spaces Act), RA 11306 (Mental Health Act), RA 11996 (the Eddie Garcia Law), and the Labor Code of the Philippines.

Estrada said he would gladly accept the criticisms as a trade-off to “get the conversation going on abuse against small artists or colleagues in the industry, or will create a wider consciousness on abuse, not just in the entertainment industry but in other sectors as well.”

Token gesture

This is what should happen at the very least—an increased public awareness of sexual harassment and assault issues and for victims to be empowered to speak up. But it should not stop there. It should also lead to enhanced protection for workers in the entertainment industry and other sectors.

This entails crafting new policies and procedures within companies to facilitate reporting of harassment or abuse in the workplace, as well as providing adequate training, especially for employees tasked to handle such cases. And to prove that the Senate investigation is not only for show or a token gesture, the committee should follow through with recommendations and amendments to complement or tighten existing laws.

More importantly, these cases should not be swept under the rug and eventually forgotten. Perpetrators of sexual harassment or abuse, regardless of whether the victims are public figures or private individuals, should be held accountable for their crimes. There need not be any more Sandro Muhlachs or Gerald Santoses who will fall victim to sexual offenders and predators.