The father of a teenager who was allegedly raped by a 35-year-old neighbour in Lloseta has released a voice message on social media websites appealing for calm.
“We are having a terrible time, but we have to be strong now," he says. "Catching this guy, beating him up and killing him would be easy, but then he goes underground and I go to prison and how will my daughter and my family cope then?” he asks.
“Rapes are sometimes silenced out of fear or shame or because the aggressors are family members or close friends,” he adds. "My daughter is young and attractive and, of course that's a problem if you laugh at a man, because he can do whatever he wants with her. It doesn't work like that, gentlemen. A woman can laugh, she can be provocative, she can feel beautiful, we all like to please. But we have to know where the limit is.”
He said his daughter and his family are going through tremendous pain and that he appreciates all the expressions of support and affection they have received.
“Right now I have to be the backbone of this family, I have to be strong and we must all remain calm and always teach our children to have values."
The 19-year-old was allegedly attacked in the early hours of Saturday morning by an acquaintance who walked her home after she'd had dinner with a friend in Lloseta.