Research by the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly from Banja Luka showed that over 90 percent of citizens, regardless of age, are aware of the existence of sexual extortion, but they often do not know how to verbalize this phenomenon. It is often confused with sexual harassment or mobbing. Sexual extortion is still present. And it is an open secret, it is emphasized in the text with the title “Sextortion – Gender Violence that is Loudly Silent” published by the Interview.ba portal.
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With the intention of raising awareness and improving the overall environment, the Helsinki Citizens’ Assembly from Banja Luka implements the project Citizens in the Fight against Silent Corruption with the aim of sexual extortion or sextortion entering the relevant laws and policies.
– Our research, as well as the promotion of activities in the field, showed that over 90 percent of citizens, regardless of age, are aware of the existence of sexual extortion, but they often do not know how to verbalize this phenomenon. It is often confused with sexual harassment or mobbing and there is definitely a need to adequately present the term itself. So – sexual extortion is still present. And it is an open secret. But the term itself is not, and there is a big task ahead of us – says Svjetlana Ramić Marković from HCA.
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According to the Policy Summary published by the HCA from Banja Luka during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence, a typical example of this form of corruption appears in institutions where persons who have the power to decide on the position of other employees seek sexual services for deserved or undeserved promotion, and is often present in education institutions, when taking exams or when hiring.
– Sexual extortion deepens poverty and represents a greater risk for people living in poverty – it is written in the HCA Policy Summary.
Criminal laws in BiH do not recognize sextortion, but they do recognize the concepts of rape by abuse of position, sexual intercourse by abuse of position and coercion into sexual intercourse.
According to the data of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council in BiH, the courts in BiH annually record one to two reports for these types of criminal offenses and the same number of investigations.
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With the intention of making the work of legislators easier, HCA analyzed the relevant laws and proposed changes.
– What is particularly recognized by this project is that sexual extortion as a form of gender-based violence does not bypass the area of private life. Often in relationships between victims of domestic violence, most often the man who traditionally has a dominant and privileged position in the family, sexual extortion can occur as a means to enable the victim of domestic violence, most often a woman, to maintain contact with minor children, members of the extended family and alike. Unfortunately, women are often blackmailed by publishing private intimate photos, and in this regard, we have already submitted a request to include sexual extortion in the new Draft Law on Protection against Domestic Violence and Violence against Women of Republic of Srpska,” says Ramić-Marković.
She emphasizes that this phenomenon is still taboo in BH society.
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One of the biggest obstacles in implementing this project and raising public awareness is the reluctance of people who have suffered sexual extortion to talk about their experiences in public.
– In meetings with citizens of BiH, we mostly hear that there is sexual extortion both during exams and in the work process itself. Everyone has heard or knows about a person who was asked for some sexual activity for the sake of some benefit, but there is a lack of those stories coming out of silence – says Ramić Marković.
Photo: Pixabay
