Alleged victim of YouTube personality Gofar Hilman publishes apology video

Gofar Hilman’s sexual harrasment case went viral again a few days ago after one of his victims, Syerin, who uses the Twitter handle Quweenjojo, posted a video of her apologising to Gofar. Accompanied by her parents, she said that she already went through a mediation process with Gofar. 

"I would like to clarify a tweet that I made on 8 June 2021, which accused Gofar Hilman of being the perpetrator of sexual harassment. I want to clarify that this is not true,” said Syerin in the video. She further said that she was in a delusional state when she shared the tweets accusing Gofar of harassing her.

It sparked a backlash on social media, as netizens speculated that Syerin was forced and pressured to do so. Some cited the similarity between this case with the sexual harrasment case portrayed in the movie “Penyalin Cahaya” (Photocopier). 

The case began on 8 June 2021, when Syerin posted a thread revealing that she was sexually harassed by Gofar Hilman. She said that the incident happened back in August 2018 and has left her deeply traumatised.

The thread went viral on Twitter. The next day, Gofar denied the allegation. “In regards with the recent sexual harrasment allegation, I am sure that I never did that,” Gofar tweeted. 

On the same day, Lawless, a company which he helped co-found, announced that as response to the sexual harrasment allegation against Gofar, the company decided to take a firm move. The next day, the management of Lawless Jakarta Indonesia removed Gofar from the company. 

“Starting today, we announce that Gofar Hilman is no longer part of Lawless Jakarta,” Lawless wrote on its Instagram account.

More than a week later, the Legal Aid Foundation of the Indonesian Women's Association for Justice (LBH APIK) announced that it has opened a complaint submission for those who have also been sexually harrassed by Gofar.  

“As of 17 June 2021, LBH APIK Jakarta has received eight complaints related to sexual harassment by GH, including complaints from the owner of the Twitter account @quweenjojo," reads a statement from Director of LBH APIK Jakarta Siti Mazumah. 

On 4 August 2021, Gofar reported Syerin to the police. According to the police, Gofar accused Syerin of defamation through electronic media.

The case then slowly disappeared from the public discourse overtime. Gofar decided to take a hiatus from social media while halting his YouTube programmes. 

It was until Syerin posted the video clarification. According to the police, Gofar and Syerin went on a mediation process on 10 February. Syerin's apology was immediately responded to by Gofar. Gofar made a thread explaining the problem. “Alhamdulillah, I finally met Syerin or @quweenjojo for the first time through a mediation process assisted by the police yesterday (10/02/2022)," wrote Gofar on his Twitter account @gofar. The mediation process went well and he has forgiven Syerin, he said. 

The LBH APIK issued a press release in regards to this issue. The institution confirmed that one of the victims had withdrawn her report against Gofar. However, the LBH Apik emphasised that it will continue to assist the seven other victims who also reported Gofar for sexual harassment.