Domestic violence is gender blind

#MeToo needs readdressing: Pinning the success or failure of a movement based on the outcome of Depp’s (left) defamation case against Heard (right) is said to be flawed. — Reuters

After the Johnny Depp defamation case against Amber Heard, the deafening silence of those involved in #MeToo movement speaks volumes of how they perceived her in the trial.

I WANTED to believe Amber Heard. The fact that there has never been a woman who came forward to say she has been abused by Johnny Depp doesn’t mean that he is not capable of doing that to Heard.

She could have punctured Depp’s credibility, a megastar high on the likeability index. She is pretty, famous and was married to one of the most recognisable film stars the world has ever known.

She is supposed to be the perfect spokesperson for the #MeToo Movement.

I must admit I spent many hours following the defamation case in Fairfax, Virginia. Depp was suing his former wife of 15 months for defaming him in an op-ed piece published online by The Washington Post.

In a world obsessed with celebrities, it is probably the trial of the century. In a world of social media, it was in fact the first TikTok Trial.

I had my initial doubts about Depp. He is no angel. He is known for excessive drinking and drug abuse. But over the course of the three-week trial I realised that he was the one most hurt by his own actions, not others.

Heard on the other hand spectacularly failed to convince us that she was a victim of domestic violence. She has little proof to offer and worse, many believed she is the abuser, not Depp.

Perhaps they are both mutual abusers, we can never know the real truth. The relationship was simply toxic.

The #MeToo movement was at its peak when Heard made that claim. Hollywood was reeling from testimonies by women involving producer Harvey Weinstein and others. Many of Hollywood’s A-List actors and top directors have been tainted by allegations of sexual harassment.

It was a movement that caught fire. The victims had risen. So much so that Time magazine named the “Silence Breakers” behind the #MeToo movement as their “Persons of the Year” in 2017.

Heard’s piece was published on Dec 18, 2018, two years after their divorce. Depp was not named but the implication was obvious. The title itself was self-explanatory: “I spoke up against sexual violence and faced our culture’s wrath. That has to change.”

Defamation is hard to prove. It is even tougher for well-known figures like Depp and Heard. What we saw and heard were simply shocking – testimonies, depositions, witnesses, audio and video recordings, fiery cross-examinations, rebuttals, all played like a legal series on Netflix.

The “he-said, she-said” arguments were full of sordid details, things normally hidden within the four walls of private homes. If you believe some of the witnesses, Heard even left her faeces at Depp’s side of the bed on her 30th birthday to make a statement. She later admitted to someone, it was a practical joke gone wrong!

Depp even ended up on the front page of The Sun in London as a “wife beater.” He sued the tabloid but lost.

The Washington Post op-ed is more damaging. Since then his life and the life of those closest to him changed forever. All in a blink of an eye, he said.

It had a seismic impact on his career, not to mention his life.

He was vindicated when the jury sided with him.

“The jury gave my life back,” he said in a statement after the verdict on Wednesday.

As for Heard, it is not about losing the case that matters, her reputation is now in tatters. She was trying to give her best performance of her career in court, but barely convinced anyone, especially the jury.

I disagree that we are witnessing the demise of the #MeToo movement. Or, as one observer opined, it marked the return of men’s rights.

Domestic violence is blind to gender. But I reckon the #MeToo movement needs readdressing.

Pinning the success or failure of a movement based on the outcome of the Depp-Heard case is flawed.

Victims out there need attention, many have to suffer in silence facing stigma and guilt, due to lack of resources and avenues in society.

For women it is even more daunting for misogyny can be a bane. But if the movement thinks Heard is their ambassador, it is a huge mistake.

In her statement after the verdict she was disappointed what the outcome meant for other women.

“It is a setback. It sets back the clock to a time when a woman who spoke out could be publicly shamed and humiliated. It sets back the idea that violence against women is to be taken seriously.”

The deafening silence of those involved in the movement speaks volume of how they perceived her in the trial.

Johan Jaaffar was a journalist, editor and for some years chairman of a media company, and is passionate about all things literature and the arts. And a diehard rugby fan. The views expressed here are entirely his own.