Hundreds of people again gathered at the town hall of Ixelles on Thursday evening to denounce the sexual abuse in cafes. ‘Victims, we believe you. Rapists, we see you,” they shouted. A demonstration against sexual violence was also organized in Ghent. 160 people gathered there.
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The march will come a week after 1,300 people participated for the first time in a rally against sexual violence. The occasion is the testimonies of two young women who had shared their traumatic experience on the Instagram page of Féminisme Libertaire Bruxelles. The two women say they were drugged and raped by a bartender in the Waff and El Café cafes. The case is being investigated by the Brussels public prosecutor.
About 500 people gathered this Thursday at the manifestation, organized by feminist organizations from Brussels. This has been confirmed by the Brussels police.
Laura Baiwir (31) of the organization Les sousentendu.es says that there is a need for structural solutions. “Protecting your drink by putting your hand over it is not a solution,” says Baiwir. “Our goal is to guarantee political change. I am talking about teaching young children what consent means, better informing officers about sexual violence and also setting up more shelters for the victims.’
Baiwir reports that this protest is not the last action. “We will also hold actions at the bars where sexual violence is said to take place. We want the cafes to close for good.”
Boycott
Calls were made on social media to boycott the cafes involved. Rosie Fagnart (20), who was also present last week, says she will never go to the cafes El Café and Le Waff again. ‘The stories had been doing the rounds for some time,’ says the film student. ‘I used to go there regularly, but not anymore. I don’t want to spend my money there, that would mean I agree with what happened there.’
Fagnart believes it is important that people take a clear stand when it comes to sexual violence. “After I found out that some male friends had raped women, I dropped them too. That is extremely difficult, but I don’t think you can remain friends with those people.’
‘I have been a victim of sexual violence myself. We think we should fear strangers, but it also happens through someone you trust and think you know. I think that’s why it’s so hard to talk about this. The first time I made a complaint, but I thought it was absurd that the police asked me what I was wearing and if I was drunk. After that I never made a complaint again’, says Fagnart.
Louis P. – who does not want his last name in the newspaper – talks about how he witnessed sexual violence. “A friend of mine forced me to coax my roommate into having sex with him,” he says. “When I refused, he tried on his own. I saw how my roommate was resisting and decided to react. He physically attacked me and tried to strangle me with my scarf. As a man I can never put myself in the place of a woman. I don’t understand how my female friends say they’re used to such behavior,” he says.
He also asks himself whether he is allowed to attend the demonstration as a man. “But I’m here to support, men also have a responsibility in this story.”
‘I believe you’
In addition to the accusations about El Café and Le Waff, stories of sedation and rape in other cafés were also released at the beginning of this week. These are collected by the Instagram page @Balancetonbar. Maité Meeus is behind the page and is present at the demonstration. She gets a lot of applause from the protesters. “I’ve received over a thousand testimonials, thank you. I see you, and I believe you,” she says.
Actress Livia Perneel (28) saw those posts on social media. “I can definitely identify with that,” she says. ‘I worked for ten years in the hospitality industry in Brussels and stopped because of the sexist comments I received. As a woman you are merely a sex object behind the bar.’ She has mixed feelings about the manifestation. ‘Of course it is good that we are heard, but do we have to keep repeating this? When I leave my house, I don’t want to be brave. I want to be free.’ Perneel says she left a bar while going out last Friday because she was touched inadvertently. “I felt five hands on my behind and left because I wanted to avoid a conflict. Apparently I can’t experience freedom on the same level as a man yet.’
Elsen’s mayor Christos Doulkeridis (Ecolo) said earlier that his municipality will take action to step up the fight against sexual violence. “The places we go out have to be safe,” he says.
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