Untangling the Roots of Harassment on the KRL: From Trigger Factors to Crowd Anonymity

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - The surge in sexual harassment cases on public transport has again raised concerns among passengers, particularly women. In recent months, several harassment incidents on the Jakarta–Bogor route of the Kereta Rel Listrik (KRL) have attracted attention after videos of victims’ confessions circulated widely on social media. Senior Clinical Psychologist and Director of Personal Growth, Ratih Ibrahim, told Kompas.com via WhatsApp that the causes of such behaviour are not singular. ‘Although there is a high likelihood that the perpetrator has a disorder, there is sexual deviance that makes him unable to restrain the urge to express sexually or commit sexual acts in public,’ Ratih said. She added that the term ‘disordered’ refers to deviations from the basic norms of human relations. ‘Why is it called disordered? It is because sexual behaviour is closely tied to the intimacy of relationships, whose expressiveness space is usually private,’ she said. She highlighted how certain environments can increase the risk of sexual crime. ‘As far as I can tell, a risky environment makes the potential for sexual harassment acts larger,’ she said. The risky environments referred to include spaces with high density and minimal surveillance. ‘Among others when we are in a crowded, densely packed crowd, with minimal supervision and anonymity—whether in public transport, bus stops, sidewalks, markets—this gives perpetrators the opportunity to act without a sense of being recognised, and will be safe for them,’ Ratih said. The density of KRL passengers during peak hours, according to Ratih, creates what is called crowd anonymity. In such a situation, the perpetrator feels their identity is hidden and they are less likely to be recognised. In addition to environmental factors, there is also the dimension of power relations and the victims’ perceptions. ‘There is misuse of power and objectification in which the perpetrator views the victim as a sexual object,’ she said. Ratih also touched on the community’s mistaken understanding of norms. ‘For instance, the belief that masculinity and male bravado are measured by sexual conquest of women,’ she said. The imbalance in relational patterns is also said to worsen the situation. ‘For example, if the perpetrator holds a higher status position which makes it hard for the victim to resist,’ she added. ‘Trigger factors of behaviour, the influence of a permissive environment, drug/alcohol abuse, frottage or exhibitionism (a disorder that seeks sexual satisfaction from touching or watching without consent) can increase the risk,’ she explained. Frottage refers to the act of rubbing bodies against another person without consent to obtain sexual satisfaction, while exhibitionism relates to the urge to display one’s genitals or perform sexual acts in front of others without consent. When asked about the psychological impact on victims, Ratih stressed that sexual harassment is not a trivial matter. ‘Indeed, being startled, shocked, hurt, humiliated, and angry are the strongest emotional reactions that emerge and are experienced by victims,’ she said. ‘Sexual harassment is not something trivial that can be ignored, let alone forgotten. Sexual harassment is a crime,’ she added.