Activists accused the police and court system of being "their rapists" in a flash mob protest outside the Msida police station on Tuesday evening. 

Organised by Moviment Graffitti, the activists gathered to protest what they have called the "unjust and senseless" acquittal of a former police officer who was charged with raping one female colleague and harassing another on multiple occasions in 2018. 

The protestors performed the Chilean protest chant A Rapist in Your Path or The rapist is you, as it is better known, which strongly condemns blaming victims for their own sexual assault. 

“It wasn’t my fault; not where I was, not how I dressed. YOU are the rapist. It’s the police. The judges. The state,” the activists said while performing the chant. 

Graffitti said in a statement that in last week's verdict, judge Consuelo Scerri Herrera "unnecessarily" mentioned the alleged rape victim's hesitance in answering questions about her personal life and ruled that the exonerated officer's confession could not be considered as admissible evidence. 

They said it was a "perversion of justice" to absolve a person of rape by dismissing the confession on "a technicality" while expecting the victim to exhibit "perfect behaviour and character". 

“All wording by the judge seemed to imply that the woman who reported the rape and assault was in some way responsible for what happened to her,” they said.

“We have seen this happen to women time and time again." 

In light of this "insensitivity" Graffitti has called for quicker judicial procedures and stronger training for the judiciary. They also called for a culture change in the justice system to embrace external rape trauma experts that show empathy to victims. 

The event was endorsed by the Women's Rights Foundation, MGRMand Young Progressive Beings.