[TW: Child sexual abuse] 

This is the first case we have heard of in which pornography was explicitly identified as the perpetrator’s motive for sexually assaulting his victim, beginning 12 years ago when she was only nine years old.

In a statement to Today in 2021, the Ministry of Social and Family Development shared that early exposure to pornographic materials may be a factor in sexual offending: “Repeated exposure and (self-pleasuring) to deviant pornography, such as those depicting children, violence and voyeurism, can also shape a young person’s sexual arousal pattern and lead some of them to develop deviant or atypical sexual interests, which they may eventually seek to satisfy through their sexual offending behaviours.”    

With explicit content becoming more easily accessible online, it is now more important than ever to advocate for comprehensive sexuality education (CSE), which includes porn literacy, to equip young people with the skills needed to distinguish between scenes depicted in porn and reality, as well as to understand the sometimes misogynistic and violent elements of porn. There has also been a lot of research done on the destructive influence of porn and its bad representation of women. 

But in order for CSE to be truly effective, parents must play a role. AWARE’s Birds & Bees workshop helps parents start and sustain important conversations with their children about sex, in a non-judgmental way. It can, among other things,  help parents introduce crucial information about consent, personal boundaries, and safety to their children.

Another troubling feature of the case is that the victim “didn’t know what was going on” because she was so young. It further emphasises the necessity of CSE for children, especially those as young as this victim, as it will provide them with critical knowledge such as understanding boundaries when it comes to their bodies, recognising sexual harassment, comprehending consent, and articulating what they have experienced.