- Pronouns
- They/she
On December 13, 2016, Attorney General Trinnien announced an open investigation into allegations of harassment. The Administrative Team quickly moved to take over that investigation, due to the nature of harassment as a violation of the forum Terms of Service. With the initial investigation now concluded, and as a result of our findings, we have decided to issue forum member Anumia with an indefinite administrative ban, lasting until at least January 2018, with the possibility of review following that.
It is important, first, to address why it was necessary that this investigation be carried out by the Administrative Team. It is commendable that the Roleplay Government of the region took the initiative to draw attention to these harassment allegations. However, harassment is a violation of the Terms of Service, which the Administrative Team has both a legal obligation and a legal authority to enforce. Addressing issues with serious real world implications should not be subject to the trivialities of our roleplay politics and to the limitations of our roleplay court system. Additionally, an investigation such as this requires handling evidence coming from witnesses and victims who are unwilling to or may be further traumatized by being required to testify in public. Therefore, the investigation is best performed within a forum administrative framework, which provides the most flexibility for observing such privacy considerations.
Since taking over the investigation, the Administrative Team have received testimony from over thirty people, including individuals from outside Europeia, and spanning nearly a decade. We have identified at least ten victims who have been treated unacceptably. In all cases, the people providing testimony directed us, on their own, towards Anumia as the source of this treatment. We do not feel it is appropriate to share the details, but we identified a clear pattern of behavior that led female players to feel pressured into engaging in sexually-charged activities that they were not comfortable with. Of particular concern was the power dynamic involved in many of the statements we received. We encountered consistent themes of unwanted advances arising out of purported mentoring or a NationStates family relationship, and also of victims who were relatively young and new to the region.
Anumia stated he was unaware that anyone took issue with his behavior, that it was never his intention to make female players uncomfortable, and that he will immediately stop such activity. However, regardless of his intentions, the fact remains that his actions have resulted in many female players, over the course of many years, feeling threatened within our community. A fundamental duty of the Administrative Team is making sure that Europeia is a place where all players feel safe. Therefore, we view actions that violate, intentionally or not, our members’ right to such a safe environment as completely unacceptable. Moreover, beyond simply taking punitive measures against such actions, we consider it critical that we minimize the risk of them occurring again.
In view of this, we determined that removing Anumia from the forum community for a minimum of one year was the only appropriate remedy. After this minimum period expires, and if Anumia wishes to return, the Administrative Team will review all of the information available to determine whether his return would no longer create unacceptable risks for members of our community.
We want to stress that our investigation is not closed. We received several unverified accounts and suggestions of people to speak with whom we could not reach. We will continue to investigate and, if more information comes to light, we may revise the terms of the ban. In particular, if you or anyone you know believes the harassment is continuing (e.g., through Skype or Discord) or feels that someone has been the subject of retaliation, please let us know immediately.
Additionally, we would like to ask our members to respect the anonymity of those that came forward. The nature of harassment allegations is such that victims are often nervous about speaking up. Please respect the sensitive nature of this investigation, and refrain from speculating about the identity of victims or approaching potential victims to ask them about their experiences.
Finally, this incident has highlighted is that the Administrative Team, and the region at large, were ill-prepared to handle allegations of this kind. Chief Administrator HEM will, in the coming days, be announcing a new anti-harassment protocol, to ensure that there is a clear system in place for reporting and investigating future complaints.
It is important, first, to address why it was necessary that this investigation be carried out by the Administrative Team. It is commendable that the Roleplay Government of the region took the initiative to draw attention to these harassment allegations. However, harassment is a violation of the Terms of Service, which the Administrative Team has both a legal obligation and a legal authority to enforce. Addressing issues with serious real world implications should not be subject to the trivialities of our roleplay politics and to the limitations of our roleplay court system. Additionally, an investigation such as this requires handling evidence coming from witnesses and victims who are unwilling to or may be further traumatized by being required to testify in public. Therefore, the investigation is best performed within a forum administrative framework, which provides the most flexibility for observing such privacy considerations.
Since taking over the investigation, the Administrative Team have received testimony from over thirty people, including individuals from outside Europeia, and spanning nearly a decade. We have identified at least ten victims who have been treated unacceptably. In all cases, the people providing testimony directed us, on their own, towards Anumia as the source of this treatment. We do not feel it is appropriate to share the details, but we identified a clear pattern of behavior that led female players to feel pressured into engaging in sexually-charged activities that they were not comfortable with. Of particular concern was the power dynamic involved in many of the statements we received. We encountered consistent themes of unwanted advances arising out of purported mentoring or a NationStates family relationship, and also of victims who were relatively young and new to the region.
Anumia stated he was unaware that anyone took issue with his behavior, that it was never his intention to make female players uncomfortable, and that he will immediately stop such activity. However, regardless of his intentions, the fact remains that his actions have resulted in many female players, over the course of many years, feeling threatened within our community. A fundamental duty of the Administrative Team is making sure that Europeia is a place where all players feel safe. Therefore, we view actions that violate, intentionally or not, our members’ right to such a safe environment as completely unacceptable. Moreover, beyond simply taking punitive measures against such actions, we consider it critical that we minimize the risk of them occurring again.
In view of this, we determined that removing Anumia from the forum community for a minimum of one year was the only appropriate remedy. After this minimum period expires, and if Anumia wishes to return, the Administrative Team will review all of the information available to determine whether his return would no longer create unacceptable risks for members of our community.
We want to stress that our investigation is not closed. We received several unverified accounts and suggestions of people to speak with whom we could not reach. We will continue to investigate and, if more information comes to light, we may revise the terms of the ban. In particular, if you or anyone you know believes the harassment is continuing (e.g., through Skype or Discord) or feels that someone has been the subject of retaliation, please let us know immediately.
Additionally, we would like to ask our members to respect the anonymity of those that came forward. The nature of harassment allegations is such that victims are often nervous about speaking up. Please respect the sensitive nature of this investigation, and refrain from speculating about the identity of victims or approaching potential victims to ask them about their experiences.
Finally, this incident has highlighted is that the Administrative Team, and the region at large, were ill-prepared to handle allegations of this kind. Chief Administrator HEM will, in the coming days, be announcing a new anti-harassment protocol, to ensure that there is a clear system in place for reporting and investigating future complaints.
