Singapore has a TFSV problem
Singapore has an epidemic we don’t talk about enough: technology-facilitated sexual violence (TFSV). The acronym is a mouthful, but what it stands for is something we’re all too familiar with—acts of unwanted sexual violence that take place over the Internet, a phone, a discreetly placed camera. Non-consensual and revenge porn, upskirt photography, and deepfake pornography are just some instances we’ve seen make headlines.
To Yiu Xin Yin, the rise of TFSV in Singapore demands more attention and action, or it’ll be a case of too little, too late. Xin Yin herself is a victim-survivor of image-based sexual abuse (IBSA), a form of TFSV. Her experience—and the tumultuous aftermath—has turned the 24-year-old into an advocate for IBSA awareness, in the hopes that Singapore can do better in the long run.
Her platform of choice, though, is decidedly unconventional: the Miss Universe Singapore 2024 pageant. While the model and livestreamer said she’s not a “stereotypical beauty queen”, Xin Yin joined the pageant because she was inspired by past queens who have used their visibility for the greater good. With that, Xin Yin hopes that Miss Universe Singapore can help her drive meaningful change for victim-survivors of IBSA.
Filmed without her consent
When she was 20 years old and pursuing a law degree at Singapore Management University (SMU), Xin Yin was filmed without her consent during an intimate encounter with her then-partner.
Unfortunately, stories like Xin Yin’s make headlines every year. Just think about the number of news headlines you’ve seen tying the National University of Singapore (NUS), for example, to sexual misconduct in recent years. Most of the stories echo Xin Yin’s experience. It’s also likely that you know someone who has been through IBSA, or that her story resonates personally with you.
The traumatic encounter pushed Xin Yin into a turbulent emotional journey, where she often felt overwhelmed and lost.
“I was just turning 20 and immediately had to navigate this whole terrain of legal repercussions and therapy,” Xin Yin recalls of the time.
Adding to her struggles, Xin Yin also faced negative remarks that discredited her experience. On top of the typical victim-blaming, she received absurd comments from the people around her in defence of her perpetrator. One member of the offender’s scholarship department even advised Xin Yin not to pursue legal action.
“They asked me to forgive the offender and not push for legal repercussions because it will affect his future,” she said.
After a long year of emotional turmoil and legal proceedings, Xin Yin’s perpetrator only received a conditional warning and avoided a criminal record, though he was suspended from his university.
Reflecting on her experience, Xin Yin expressed profound disappointment in the legal system.
“I think what was terrible was that it felt really disheartening to see the lack of validation from the legal system and institution,” she laments.
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“I had to rely on my own inner voice. I had to be the person who would talk about this.”
Xin Yin recounts the incident with Monica Baey while discussing her own verdict with us. For many Singaporeans, Monica is the ur-example of IBSA on a university campus.
In 2019, Monica spoke up about being filmed in the hall shower while at NUS by a fellow student, Nicholas Lim. Despite the evidence that Monica had against Nicholas, which included CCTV footage, he received only a 12-month conditional police warning, and a short-term suspension from school.
Netizens reflect Singapore’s lax attitudes towards TFSV. On Reddit discussions about IBSA, Xin Yin read comments downplaying the rise of digital voyeurism in Singapore.
“I saw this post saying how, in other countries, they have murders, but we just have upskirters. I don’t know where this logic comes from.”, Xin Yin said, clearly perplexed.
She stresses that each crime has its own consequences and should be addressed with appropriate severity.
Following the incident, Xin Yin felt a growing need to speak out about her IBSA experience. Determined to highlight the severity of IBSA and frustrated by being unheard, she took to Instagram to share her victim impact statement.
Inspired by Monica’s use of social media to speak up against her perpetrator and NUS’ handling of her sexual assault, Xin Yin shared her own narrative online as well.
“It was through all of this that I learned I had to rely on my own inner voice. I had to be the person who would talk about this, because at that point in time, I did not have anyone to rely on”.
Through her post, she conveyed the emotional and physical impact IBSA had on her, and aimed to advocate for those who feel silenced and helpless. Xin Yin hoped her story would serve as a beacon of resilience and hope.
“It is always easier to live when you know that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and it makes the journey a lot more bearable.”
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On not being “The Perfect Victim”
Just like the reactions from people in her life, the comments on Xin Yin’s post were mixed.
On one hand, Xin Yin faced significant victim-blaming because she did not fit the societal expectation of “The Perfect Victim”. Xin Yin noted that many people believe, “if you’re not the perfect victim, then you shouldn’t be complaining about what you’ve gone through.”
She explains that The Perfect Victim is someone who is perceived as entirely helpless, and has not done anything that can be seen as “inviting” the assault they experienced.
In Xin Yin’s case, people pointed out that she knew her perpetrator and had consented to the intimate act. Therefore, her experience with sexual assault was less than valid. Even though she didn’t consent to the recording, many didn’t view her as vulnerable. Essentially, she was asking for it.
On the other hand, Xin Yin was reassured that she wasn’t alone when many reached out to share similar experiences and first-hand accounts.
“After I posted about my experience, there was an influx of women, and actually some men who told about their first-hand accounts,” she said. Xin Yin also highlighted that “there’s a lot of this happening in Singapore and beyond.”
Singapore needs to do more to curb the TSFV epidemic
For victim-survivors like Xin Yin, the lack of legal repercussions and sensitivity from the public only amplifies the trauma of the assault.
“It’s basically being traumatised again, in a different way,” she emphasises.
Singapore needs to do more to prevent a further uptick in TFSV cases, which can then reduce how society at large downplays the severity of this phenomenon. Improved responses from law enforcement, educational institutions, and the public are things Xin Yin advocates strongly for.
On the legal front, offenders currently face short-term jail sentences, and/or mandatory treatment orders by the court. Xin Yin feels these measures are lacking, citing Nicholas Tan as an example.
Nicholas Tan is a Nanyang Technological University (NTU) student who was caught filming upskirt videos of a fellow student. He received a short-term jail sentence and a mandatory treatment order, but still committed the same offence on a 17-year-old girl while on bail. Still, the court believed his offences were “low harm”, and shortened his jail term from 7 to 4 weeks.
Given the prevalence of IBSA cases in universities, Xin Yin wants school boards to have transparent measures to punish perpetrators. Currently, universities veer between expulsion and suspension for offenders, but victims rarely get clarity on which sentence is served, and when.
“I think one thing that I’ve always been curious about is, when is it expulsion and when is it suspension? There are no clear reports that tell us what metrics they base their decision on. And I think that is really, really important, not only to the public, but also to the victims, to help them feel a sense of closure.”
When asked how people can better support those who have experienced IBSA, Xin Yin urges individuals to be mindful of their words. While IBSA is not as widely discussed as more conventional forms of sexual assault, such as rape, it doesn’t warrant victim-blaming.
“Even if they instinctively want to victim-blame or question the victim’s actions, it doesn’t have to come out of their mouths. It doesn’t have to reach the victim—sometimes silence is better than saying something.”
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Providing support through The Moxie Collective
Recalling the emotions she experienced during the incident, Xin Yin felt compelled to create a platform for victims of similar tragedies to seek guidance and support.
“Because of the isolation that I felt in the past year, I felt like I could do something with my pain.”
Driven by a desire to transform her pain into something constructive, Xin Yin, along with a group of other survivors, started The Moxie Collective.
The Moxie Collective offers a healing space for IBSA victim-survivors, allowing them to feel heard and seen. The organisation hosts monthly meet-ups that let victim-survivors receive the support they need.
Xin Yin hopes that her participation in Miss Universe Singapore, along with her work on The Moxie Collective, will help her advocate for greater recognition of IBSA and promote more effective and sensitive approaches to handling such cases.
You’re not alone if you’re going through IBSA
Xin Yin wants those in similar situations to know that they are not alone.
Besides reaching out to AWARE, Xin Yin also shared that she turned to Centre of Excellence for Youth Mental Health (CHAT) to engage a counsellor during her difficult period.
She emphasised that “Help is always available, and even if the people around you are not supporting you or validating your experiences, there are many people who will, you just have to find the right one”.
The Moxie Collective is actively seeking allies and victims who are interested in joining their community. Reach out by emailing themoxiecollective23@gmail.com or sending a message to their Instagram (@themoxiecollective.sg).
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All images courtesy of Yiu Xin Yin (@yiuxinyin).
