Sharon Cuneta’s daughter, Frankie Pangilinan, went viral after calling out broadcaster Ben Tulfo who tried to undermine her stand against rape and shaming the victim.
The dispute started after Frankie Pangilinan condemned a Quezon province police station for telling women to stop wearing certain kinds of clothes to avoid being the target of sex offenders.
“STOP TEACHING GIRLS HOW TO DRESS?? TEACH PEOPLE NOT TO RAPE.”
STOP TEACHING GIRLS HOW TO DRESS?? TEACH PEOPLE NOT TO RAPE. https://t.co/mERzlAqXBm
— kakie (@kakiep83) June 12, 2020
This caught the attention of broadcaster Ben Tulfo, who then gave his views on how women should dress, and tagged Frankie in his tweet.
“Hija @kakiep83 , a rapist or a juvenile sex offender’s desire to commit a crime will always be there. All they need is an opportunity when to commit the crime. Sexy ladies, careful with the way you dress up! You are inviting the beast.”
Hija @kakiep83 , a rapist or a juvenile sex offender's desire to commit a crime will always be there. All they need is an opportunity, when to commit the crime. Sexy ladies, careful with the way you dress up! You are inviting the beast.
— Ben Tulfo (@bitagbentulfo) June 13, 2020
This started the exchange of arguments between the two, where Frankie replied immediately lamenting her views, emphasizing explicitly that “rape culture is real and a product of this precise line of thinking, where behavior is normalized, particularly by men.”
– rape culture is real and a product of this precise line of thinking, where the behavior is normalized, particularly by men.
– the way anyone dresses should not be deemed as ‘opportunity’ to sexually assault them. ever.
– calling me hija will not belittle my point. https://t.co/bLbtEDVGBn— kakie (@kakiep83) June 14, 2020
This didn’t stop the broadcaster end even posted a screenshot of Frankie’s tweet on Facebook and tagged her as ‘Wannabe Smart Aleck.’
https://www.facebook.com/579083885448801/posts/3324094124281083/?d=n
Frankie was immediately supported by celebrities and netizens after she criticized Tulfo for saying the way women dress invites sex offenders to commit a crime.
K Brosas tweeted her disgust with what could happen if a victim reported to a police officer who has this kind of mindset.
“Imagine kung May mag rereklamo SA pulis na na harass sexually o na rape tapos ang unang itatanong SA biktima ehh.. ‘ANO BA KASI SUOT MO?? GAANO KAIKSI BA??’ .. shutanginamez!!”
https://twitter.com/kbrosas/status/1272032451674554368?s=21
Even President Rodrigo Duterte’s niece, Nuelle Duterte, tagged Ben Tulfo in her tweet saying that the reporter’s view is how sex offenders and rapists think, “FYI, this is how rapists and sex offenders think.”
https://twitter.com/nuelleduterte/status/1271975056835522562?s=21
Kapamilya star Chienna Filomeno also tweeted her stance that girls dress for themselves and not for rapists.
“’Ang tanging magagawa ay manamit ng tama.’ Your words ‘baguhin muna natin ang sarili’t pag-iisip natin.’ Eh baguhin mo kaya yang utak mo. Walang rape kung walang rapist! Hindi mo maisip yun? I dress for myself! Not for you sickos @bitagbentulfo”
“Ang tanging magagawa ay manamit ng tama.”
Your words “baguhin muna natin ang sarili’t pag-iisip natin.” Eh baguhin mo kaya yang utak mo.
Walang rape kung walang rapist! Hindi mo maisip yun? I dress for myself! Not for you sickos @bitagbentulfo
— Chienna Filomeno (@ChieFilomeno) June 14, 2020
A few hours later, Pangilinan tweeted the hashtag # HijaAko, which included a screenshot of an anonymous sender’s message stating they ‘d like to “still sign up for the hija label if that’s what ben tulfo’s calling girls fighting for their human rights.”
#HijaAko topped Twitter trends after Frankie Pangilinan hit back at Ben Tulfo for victim-blaming women.
#HijaAko pic.twitter.com/LYXZqsoVSz
— kakie (@kakiep83) June 14, 2020
#HijaAko now has more than 65,000 tweets, many from netizens who condemn Tulfo’s victim-blaming comments, with others sharing their own sexual harassment experiences.
