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[h=1]Stand up to the public transport pervert! <!-- use for displaying the black triangle on the left -->[/h]
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Aretha Loh | Her World | Saturday, Feb 1, 2014
When it comes to public transport, my woes are never-ending. Long queues, cramped carriages, delays in the journey that turn a 15-minute ride into a half-an-hour one… the list could go on.
But if there's one thing that I'm particularly peeved about, it's the perverts that lurk in the crowded confines of our trains and buses.
And you should be too. The statistics are alarming: The number of outrage-of-modesty cases on public transport have jumped from 114 in 2011 to 155 in 2012, according to the Singapore Police Force.
And then there's the 76 cases reported in the first half of 2013 and the many unreported accounts I've heard from girlfriends.
That said, there's no need to be afraid or suffer in silence.
We get three women who chose to fight to spill the beans on how they dealt with the perverts who tried to get the best of them.
I GOT PHYSICAL
"I was in the train on the way to work one day when I felt someone's hand brushing against my butt.
The first time it happened, I assumed it was accidental because the train was jerking quite a bit. Plus, it was peak period, so the carriage was packed.
However, after the person's hand lingered on my bottom for a good 10 seconds, I got suspicious and decided to check out who it was through the reflection in the train doors.
I saw this bespectacled chubby man dressed in smart office attire in his 30's, smirking at my back. I didn't want to create a scene because he could easily deny it or blame it on the lack of space, so I got physical.
I prepped myself for the next train jerk and jabbed him hard with my elbows when it did.
Thankfully, it was enough to startle him. He was more shocked than embarrassed by my move, and moved a step back.
I don't think anyone noticed what was going on, but at least he didn't try anything else after that."
- Mandy*, 22, Student
- See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...public-transport-pervert#sthash.7vmaQarv.dpuf
Aretha Loh | Her World | Saturday, Feb 1, 2014 I TOLD HIM OFF "A few months ago, I was in the train with my boyfriend on the way home. A man in his 30s was seated directly opposite me. When I looked up, I saw him holding his phone straight up in front of his face. Because it was getting dark outside, I could see what was on his screen through the reflection in the windows and guess what I saw? My crotch. I was in shorts with my legs slightly parted. I kept my eyes on him, without alerting my boyfriend and saw him turn his phone towards another woman three seats away from me, who was wearing a miniskirt that revealed almost three quarters of her thigh. By this time, I could clearly see what was on his screen because his phone was a lot closer to the window. He continued to film her for a good minute or so before he realised that I was watching him, which prompted him to put his phone away and head for the doors. Outraged, I followed him out. I confronted him about what I had seen and insisted that he hand his phone over. He vehemently denied it and even worse, called me crazy. To make matters worse, my boyfriend, who didn't know what had happened, kept trying to calm me down instead of helping me get hold of the man's phone. The man opened a few random folders and showed it to my boyfriend, saying: 'See, I told her there's no video; your girlfriend is crazy' I threatened to call the police and he walked away, which was pretty much the end of things. Till now, I'm still mad when I think about how he 'escaped', but I'm glad that I called him out at the very least. People like him need to know they won't get away with doing such things." -Anna*, 26, marketing officer - See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...ansport-pervert?page=0,1#sthash.qQD2MQEK.dpuf
I SHAMED HIM ON SOCIAL MEDIA… AND WENT TO THE POLICE "Last June, I was on the bus when a middle-aged man boarded and took the seat beside mine. Shortly after, he whipped out his phone and started snapping pictures in my direction. He didn't even bother to put his phone on silent mode, so I could hear the shutter go off. Annoyed, I did what any social media savvy girl would do - a panic tweet accompanied with his picture. He must have noticed me taking his picture, because he fiddled with his phone (I suspect he was deleting the photos of me) and got off at the next stop. Refusing to let the matter go, I followed him off the bus and demanded to check his phone. To prove his 'innocence', he showed me his photo album and, true enough, there wasn't a single picture of me. However it was filled with shorts of other unsuspecting women in buses and at bus stops. Outraged, I asked him why he had such pictures in his phone. His lame reply? That it was a 'hobby' He also admitted to snapping pictures of me, but deleted them because 'they were blur'. I told him it was unacceptable to do such things, after which he raised his fist and threatened to punch me. Thankfully, there were a few people present at the time. I finally decided there was no point in talking to him and left him at the bus stop with a final yell about what a sick and disgusting person he was. There were a few bewildered passers-by staring at us by then. Later on, I shared the incident on Facebook and Twitter as a 'public service announcement' to warn my friends to watch out for strangers taking their photos. I also went to the police station the next day to make a report, although there was nothing much the police could do because it's not illegal to take a picture of someone else. Plus, I didn't have any of his identification details. That said, I'm still glad I chose to do something about it. Just because what the perv did wasn't illegal doesn't mean that it was okay for him to do it." - Jane*, 26, freelance copywriter *Names have been changed. - See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...ansport-pervert?page=0,2#sthash.QGkRSM34.dpuf
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Aretha Loh | Her World | Saturday, Feb 1, 2014
When it comes to public transport, my woes are never-ending. Long queues, cramped carriages, delays in the journey that turn a 15-minute ride into a half-an-hour one… the list could go on.
But if there's one thing that I'm particularly peeved about, it's the perverts that lurk in the crowded confines of our trains and buses.
And you should be too. The statistics are alarming: The number of outrage-of-modesty cases on public transport have jumped from 114 in 2011 to 155 in 2012, according to the Singapore Police Force.
And then there's the 76 cases reported in the first half of 2013 and the many unreported accounts I've heard from girlfriends.
That said, there's no need to be afraid or suffer in silence.
We get three women who chose to fight to spill the beans on how they dealt with the perverts who tried to get the best of them.
I GOT PHYSICAL
"I was in the train on the way to work one day when I felt someone's hand brushing against my butt.
The first time it happened, I assumed it was accidental because the train was jerking quite a bit. Plus, it was peak period, so the carriage was packed.
However, after the person's hand lingered on my bottom for a good 10 seconds, I got suspicious and decided to check out who it was through the reflection in the train doors.
I saw this bespectacled chubby man dressed in smart office attire in his 30's, smirking at my back. I didn't want to create a scene because he could easily deny it or blame it on the lack of space, so I got physical.
I prepped myself for the next train jerk and jabbed him hard with my elbows when it did.
Thankfully, it was enough to startle him. He was more shocked than embarrassed by my move, and moved a step back.
I don't think anyone noticed what was going on, but at least he didn't try anything else after that."
- Mandy*, 22, Student
- See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...public-transport-pervert#sthash.7vmaQarv.dpuf
Aretha Loh | Her World | Saturday, Feb 1, 2014 I TOLD HIM OFF "A few months ago, I was in the train with my boyfriend on the way home. A man in his 30s was seated directly opposite me. When I looked up, I saw him holding his phone straight up in front of his face. Because it was getting dark outside, I could see what was on his screen through the reflection in the windows and guess what I saw? My crotch. I was in shorts with my legs slightly parted. I kept my eyes on him, without alerting my boyfriend and saw him turn his phone towards another woman three seats away from me, who was wearing a miniskirt that revealed almost three quarters of her thigh. By this time, I could clearly see what was on his screen because his phone was a lot closer to the window. He continued to film her for a good minute or so before he realised that I was watching him, which prompted him to put his phone away and head for the doors. Outraged, I followed him out. I confronted him about what I had seen and insisted that he hand his phone over. He vehemently denied it and even worse, called me crazy. To make matters worse, my boyfriend, who didn't know what had happened, kept trying to calm me down instead of helping me get hold of the man's phone. The man opened a few random folders and showed it to my boyfriend, saying: 'See, I told her there's no video; your girlfriend is crazy' I threatened to call the police and he walked away, which was pretty much the end of things. Till now, I'm still mad when I think about how he 'escaped', but I'm glad that I called him out at the very least. People like him need to know they won't get away with doing such things." -Anna*, 26, marketing officer - See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...ansport-pervert?page=0,1#sthash.qQD2MQEK.dpuf
I SHAMED HIM ON SOCIAL MEDIA… AND WENT TO THE POLICE "Last June, I was on the bus when a middle-aged man boarded and took the seat beside mine. Shortly after, he whipped out his phone and started snapping pictures in my direction. He didn't even bother to put his phone on silent mode, so I could hear the shutter go off. Annoyed, I did what any social media savvy girl would do - a panic tweet accompanied with his picture. He must have noticed me taking his picture, because he fiddled with his phone (I suspect he was deleting the photos of me) and got off at the next stop. Refusing to let the matter go, I followed him off the bus and demanded to check his phone. To prove his 'innocence', he showed me his photo album and, true enough, there wasn't a single picture of me. However it was filled with shorts of other unsuspecting women in buses and at bus stops. Outraged, I asked him why he had such pictures in his phone. His lame reply? That it was a 'hobby' He also admitted to snapping pictures of me, but deleted them because 'they were blur'. I told him it was unacceptable to do such things, after which he raised his fist and threatened to punch me. Thankfully, there were a few people present at the time. I finally decided there was no point in talking to him and left him at the bus stop with a final yell about what a sick and disgusting person he was. There were a few bewildered passers-by staring at us by then. Later on, I shared the incident on Facebook and Twitter as a 'public service announcement' to warn my friends to watch out for strangers taking their photos. I also went to the police station the next day to make a report, although there was nothing much the police could do because it's not illegal to take a picture of someone else. Plus, I didn't have any of his identification details. That said, I'm still glad I chose to do something about it. Just because what the perv did wasn't illegal doesn't mean that it was okay for him to do it." - Jane*, 26, freelance copywriter *Names have been changed. - See more at: http://ride.asiaone.com/features/ti...ansport-pervert?page=0,2#sthash.QGkRSM34.dpuf
