Thread by @AsimCP

TW: I just want to reflect a little on some of the demands being made that survivors of rape go to the authorities to formally lodge a complaint against an alleged perpetrator. There are a number of barriers that are worth thinking of before people make such a demand

The first is that any recounting of a serious trauma regularly results in a re-experiencing of it. You are effectively asking the survivor to re-experience that violence (which the body feels during the recounting) again and again

In the hundreds of interviews I've conducted with survivors of all manner of extreme physical violence, I can tell you that you can see the survivor physically in pain as they relate their experiences - it's extremely hard on them

If a woman does choose to come forward and make a formal allegation of rape and sexual assault, then the legal system presents further barriers. The legal system in the UK in particular has made it difficult for women to have testimony taken seriously.

The police are notoriously bad at taking such statements, often providing little or no support through the process. This is a subject that I've researched myself in the past and it's really no surprise that women don't go to the authorities to make formal complaints

A key problem associated in the giving of testimony is the extent to which the memory fragments during such serious acts. There is a wealth of literature that documents how rape survivors cannot retain a singular narrative memory, because they often dissociate during the violence

The problem with seeking testimony from someone whose memory fragments, is that this often seen as a sign that the survivor is lying about their experience, because they may make mistakes in the recall.

Although this may be true of many other cultures, I want to finally think a little about the cultural double penalty that Muslim women potentially face in coming forward to formally lodge a complaint

I think it's important that we are mature enough to recognise that after having been subjected to rape or other forms of sexual violence, by coming forward and becoming known within the community as having been harmed, the Muslim women will often be considered tainted

So when the demand is made that a Muslim woman ‘prove’ that she was sexually assaulted, that demand is not taking place in an environment that is conducive to her publicly declaring the harm, as there is a potential consequence for her future within the community she lives

Seeking accountability within a flawed criminal justice system and having avenues available within the community where survivors might desire a friendly and religiously sensitive ear are two different things.

Muslims should feel a great deal of support from within our communities, they have a right to feel that regardless of the inadequacies of the systems we live in, that they can find succour among their own.

Justice should always be a cornerstone of everything we do, but seeking justice without mercy can oftentimes obscure what is genuinely at stake for the ones we seek justice for.