Written by Ivana Paneva
TRIGGER WARNING!
The following article contains words and information related to sexual violence.
From influencing political actors to change the law to demanding education institutions to take action in the name of students’ well-being - Amnesty International’s campaign Let’s Talk About YES seems to do it all. By focusing on consent as an essential, they advocate for a society where everyone understands and respects it, and for the protection of the survivors of sexual violence. Bringing justice is something you can do, too. Let’s talk about that…
Recently, Spain passed the “only yes means yes law” as a result of the public’s voiced concerns and pressure for a change of the former law. It states that consent must be affirmative, where one’s actions should “clearly express the person’s wishes”. The legislation brings justice to the survivors of sexual violence, adding Spain to the growing list of EU countries with laws that recognize the lack of consent in sex as rape. Yet, the Netherlands still has to catch up in this regard.
Lack of consent is rape
Dutch law concerning the topic is outdated. It rests on the view that if use of coercion cannot be proven, then the case is not treated as rape. However, the Amnesty International campaign Let’s Talk About YES strongly disagrees with this assumption. In 70% of the cases, the survivor is incapable of actively resisting. Instead, they fall into a state of involuntary, temporary motor inhibition, also known as tonic immobility, or freezing. The campaign strongly believes that these situations when the survivor cannot speak or move, or when they have been drugged must also be acknowledged, since they are often left neglected. Moreover, the majority of survivors do not report their experiences to the police. They might feel reluctant to do so when they are not assured they will receive support. Those that do, on the other hand, oftentimes do not obtain the justice they deserve since evidence must be provided. That is why Let’s Talk About YES advocates for a law that is in favour of the protection of the survivor of sexual assault.
The campaign was started in 2020 after Ferdinand Grapperhaus, the Dutch Minister of Justice and Security at that time, published a draft bill where non-consensual sex was viewed as a criminal offence, but not as rape. Working with an action group of survivors, Amnesty lobbied for changes to the draft bill, primarily for it to identify sex against the will as rape. They played a big role in the process by addressing freezing and survivors’ opinion on the old proposal. And their voices were successfully heard. On 8 March 2021, the new bill criminalized all forms of non-consensual sex as rape, shifting the focus from coercion exercised on the survivor to their lack of will. This means that the initiator will have a bigger responsibility to observe the other’s behaviour during sex. It not only offers more protection to the survivors of sexual violence, but it also helps raise awareness among the public and about what healthy sexual interaction should look like.
Although Amnesty is very pleased with the breakthrough proposal, the law is scheduled to be put into effect in 2024. Bearing in mind the pressing necessity of the protection of the survivors, they believe that this is too far ahead in the future. This calls for actions to be taken as soon as possible.
Higher education institutions should be more active
Another important goal for Let’s Talk About YES is to ensure a safe space for students by convincing higher education institutions to take measures towards countering sexual violence. According to the I&O survey commission by Amnesty, one in ten female and 1% of male students experienced non-consensual sexual penetration during their studies. 67% of students who have experienced rape during their studies suffer from psychological, physical, sexual or social problems as a result. This poses a risk to their well-being and of eventual problems with their studies, drop in grades and not finishing their program.
By starting a dialogue about sex and consent, especially among young people, Let’s Talk About YES wants to provide a safe, educational and empowering environment, while also trying to influence institutions to change and adapt to the concerns. That is why they created a manifesto which lists the steps every higher education institution should take in order to tackle sexual violence. It contains specific areas for improvement in terms of prevention, support and procedures. As a space for development and learning, universities have great capacity in teaching students about consent. Amnesty's suggestions include training for students and teachers, appealing information facilities on help and support options, and a trauma-sensitive reporting procedure. This way, institutions could be held accountable for the promises they make on social safety. Next month, Amnesty is organising a conference for the staff of the Dutch higher education institutions which have signed the manifesto. This creates a learning climate where employees do not have to keep reinventing the wheel themselves, but where everyone can come up with solutions to this immense problem together.
However, Utrecht University has refused to sign the manifesto. The university finds the manifesto to be rather small and focused primarily on students’ sexual safety, whereas they aspire to provide social safety in general for all, even for employees, which they are currently working on. They also prefer to approach the issue themselves, considering the importance of the topic. The campaign perceives the institution’s responses as excuses. Let’s Talk About YES believes that the manifesto is a step towards Utrecht University achieving its goals. The members of the campaign offer their help in the name of the university’s students' well-being and protection against sexual violence.
The team in Utrecht is putting all of their energy into spreading the importance of the manifesto and convincing the university to sign it. To do this, they started a petition that everyone who wants to contribute to their efforts is free to sign. If you also believe that Utrecht University should sign the manifesto, make sure to sign and spread the petition before December!
Are you interested?
Yet, if you want to further support the campaign’s ambitions and work with it towards achieving its goals, Let’s Talk About YES is always recruiting members. Its activities consist of organising actions, talking to the university and its alliances, and to students, approaching the press, and doing everything it can to spread the word and make our academic community a little safer. In case anything of this speaks to your values and you want to contribute with your own input and ideas on the matter, you are more than welcome to join their community!
Would you like to join or do you want more information? Send them a DM via their Instagram, @letstalkaboutyesutrecht, or email them at letstalkaboutyesutrecht@gmail.com.
At the beginning of December, Amnesty International Student Group Utrecht, in collaboration with SV Euphorian, will be hosting a workshop on the topics of consent and sexual violence. More information about the event will follow on Instagram: @amnestystudentsutrecht). Stay tuned!
Are you a survivor of sexual violence and are you looking for help? Then look up www.centrumseksueelgeweld.nl or www.watkanmijhelpen.nl or call the Sexual Violence Center on 0800 0188.