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Kylie Knott

Eunice Yeung places her hands on her belly – she is seven months pregnant with her first child. “I’m having a boy and all I want is for him to grow up respecting women.”
She’s heard many stories where that has not been the case.
Yeung is a Hong Kong-based therapist specialising in support for trauma survivors. As well as running her own private practice she works as a part-time counsellor at RainLily, the city’s first sexual violence crisis centre for women.
“The girls that come to RainLily for support bravely share personal and traumatic stories,” she says.


As a way to honour both the resilience of survivors of sexual violence who come to RainLily to heal, and the tireless work of mental health professionals, Yeung has released Lily, a song she wrote and sang under the artist name Count the Leaves.
“It is a way for me to remember some of these girls’ transformations and what a privilege it is to be able to witness that,” she says.
‘Weak mind, inability to resist’: college blames women for sex assaults
Lily is the second single off the 32-year-old’s five-song debut EP “This World Can Hold”, which will be released on Spotify, Apple Music and other platforms on August 13.
The song’s opening lyrics are powerful:
She came in looking cold and afraid
When the elevator door opened she looked both ways
She said, ‘Life can turn on a dime
When I was 10, he pushed in and took what was mine.’”
“The first verse is about the fear that many survivors of sexual violence have to face,” says Yeung. “After experiencing such a sudden and confusing violation, it is natural to feel unsafe, to feel that danger is just behind the door even after the traumatic event.

“One of the first things I do with clients is normalise this fear. It’s a protective mechanism, not a pathological reaction. Helping them face and undo the shame of feeling like what happened was their fault is also an important part of the therapeutic process.”
Yeung wants society to stop stigmatising those who have experienced sexual abuse, a widespread problem in Hong Kong, she says. RainLily’s latest campaign, #OneinSeven, is a reference to the proportion of women in the city who have experienced sexual violence.
“Victim blaming intensifies the hurt of what already was a very painful experience,” says Yeung. “Many who have been sexually abused are told they should not have been drunk, or that they should not have stayed out late.”

Shame also plays a role in keeping survivors from reaching out. “Those who were sexually assaulted as a child have been told it shouldn’t affect them now that they are older, or that they should be over it already,” she says. “Many families also feel shame and they don’t want their child seeking help, so they keep it a secret.”
“It’s a complicated combination of cultural and societal standards that we have to change.”
For more information, visit rainlily.org.hk








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Sexual harassment and assault

Hong Kong singer and therapist writes song for survivors of sexual violence

Hong Kong singer/songwriter Eunice Yeung has written a song dedicated to survivors of sexual violence. Photo: Eunice Yeung

Hong Kong singer/songwriter Eunice Yeung. Photo: Kylie Knott

The cover of Eunice Yeung’s single, Lily. Photo: Eunice Yeung

Sexual violence: exhibition gives voice to Hong Kong victims who felt isolated, blamed and did not report attacks

The ‘#OneInSeven: Stories Beyond the Numbers’ exhibition uses objects from victims of sexual violence to tell their stories and empower them. Photo: Edmond So

#OneinSeven Exhibition at 480 Gender and Art Space, Yau Ma Tei. The Exhibition showing objects, rather than photos, provided by 11 survivors which tell their stories to empower them. 04MAY21  SCMP / Edmond So

Irene Lam Kit Man, Senior Officer (Communication & Resource Development) of Association Concerning Sexual Violence Against Women, poses for a picture inYau Ma Tei. The Exhibition showing objects, rather than photos, provided by 11 survivors which tell their stories to empower them. 04MAY21  SCMP / Edmond So

Sexual abuse survivor who founded support group in Hong Kong on her own trauma, and advice for others

Childhood sexual abuse survivor Taura Edgar set up Talk Hong Kong to provide support for surviviors of sexual abuse. Photo: K. Y. Cheng

In 2019, WHO formally recognised the existence of complex post-traumatic stress disorder, a condition that develops in response to prolonged, repeated experience of interpersonal trauma. Photo: Shutterstock

Sexual violence crisis centre RainLily’s latest campaign is #OneinSeven – a reference to the proportion of women in Hong Kong who have experienced sexual violence. Photo: courtesy of RainLily

The cover of British psychotherapist Pete Walker’s book.

The cover of Bass and Davis’ book.

‘Where is the humanity?’ Refugee charity co-founder on helping sexual violence victims through sport, Hong Kong’s inadequate aid and getting into running

Virginie Goethals, co-founder of RUN, says Covid-19 has caused the level of trauma experienced by refugees to go “through the roof” and she has never worked as much as she has the last 18 months. Photo: Antony Dickson

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Goethals running in the Beijing countryside in the winter of 2012. Photo: Courtesy of Virginie Goethals

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Goethals running during the Hong Kong Four Trails Ultra Challenge 2021. Photo: Courtesy of Virginie Goethals

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Eunice Yeung is a therapist specialising in support for trauma survivors, and a singer/songwriter
Her new song, Lily, honours survivors of sexual violence and the work of mental health professionals



Trauma therapist, counsellor and singer/songwriter Eunice Yeung has written a song, Lily, to honour survivors of sexual violence and the tireless work of mental health professionals.


Crime

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Hong Kong singer and therapist writes song for survivors of sexual violence

Eunice Yeung is a therapist specialising in support for trauma survivors, and a singer/songwriter Her new song, Lily, honours survivors of sexual violence and the work of mental health professionals

Eunice Yeung is a therapist specialising in support for trauma survivors, and a singer/songwriter

Her new song, Lily, honours survivors of sexual violence and the work of mental health professionals