SINGAPORE — Three women’s groups have called the apology by popular local podcast Okletsgo “insincere”, saying it is drowned by “unrepentant” resharing of their fans’ support and approval on social media.

Crit Talk, Beyond the Hijab and Penawar — groups that champion the rights of women by creating safe spaces for them — took to Facebook on Tuesday night (June 16) to demand that the hosts be held accountable for their misogynistic remarks against women.

This can be done by taking “concrete” action such as attending gender sensitivity and sexual assault first responder training, making regular donations to the Sexual Assault Care Centre and removing podcasts with offensive remarks from their Spotify list.

They also called on the sponsors and collaborators of Okletsgo to withdraw future support and partnership until it has taken these steps.

Similar suggestions were made by the Association of Women for Action and Research (Aware) on Monday, which called the podcast hosts to take actions such as educating listeners on the dangers of objectification and committing to a more nuanced and sensitive discourse in all future content.

Okletsgo — started by former Ria 89.7 radio deejays Dzar Ismail, 34, Dyn Norahim, 38, and Raja Razie, 38, in February last year — faced a public backlash after a tweet by user anygalien, who said the hosts reminded her of the Malay men in her life who “casually dehumanise and sexualise women and brush it off as jokes”, went viral.

The tweet quickly drew an outpouring of support from other users, who pointed out examples of offensive remarks that have been made by the hosts over the years.

In one episode, for example, one of the hosts said he could not take his eyes off the cleavage of a transgender woman who had been invited on the podcast to talk about her activism work in Project X, an organisation that champions the rights of sex workers.

On Monday, President Halimah Yacob called on the three men to “sincerely and humbly apologise to all women”, saying she had received many emails from individuals who raised concerns about the podcast and the values it promotes among its young listeners.

STATEMENT PROMPTED BY LACKLUSTRE RESPONSES

With the podcast amassing more than 100,000 listeners on Spotify and topping the music sharing platform’s charts, the women’s groups said most of Okletsgo’s supporters have kept silent in complicity.

“We are alarmed at not only the hosts’ crude and offensive comments on air, but also by the sheer numbers of men (and some women) who make criminal threats of intimidation to the women who have spoken up against them.

“When outraged women speak out, Okletsgo supporters partake in ‘bro’ culture by rallying in their defence and making threats of doxxing and rape,” they said.

Asked what prompted their joint statement, Ms Sya Taha, co-founder of Crit Talk, pointed to the lacklustre responses issued by other agencies.

“Let’s just be clear what we want. We see this (misogyny), we feel this, and we want the hosts to stop by doing this,” she said, reiterating the actions that the groups have proposed collectively.

“I think being able to put out a strong statement of advocacy like this is a good reminder to them and others who made similar misogynistic remarks,” she added.

While Okletsgo previously argued that its podcast takes a no-holds-barred and unapologetic approach to taboo and controversial topics, these topics need to be approached and facilitated responsibly and with care, as they can have a negative impact on women, said the women’s groups.

“You don’t have to exploit people’s pain and trauma or subject them to even more hurt while you’re trying to interview them or have a difficult conversation,” said Ms Sya.

Agreeing, a spokeswoman for Beyond the Hijab said it is imperative that the podcast’s hosts take some responsibility for the things they say and demonstrate that they are committed to change, knowing the reach of the podcast and the influence it has.

“Basically what we want them to do is back up (their apology) with concrete action,” she said.

The spokeswoman added that Okletsgo, like many community groups, is working to have difficult discussions which allow for diverse voices to come forward, and it should work to ensure these discussions are healthy and respectful.

Ms Sya said: “We know that (misogyny) will not be solved with this statement and not in this year or possibly not in our generation — this is the work that has been done by many women and men before us.

“We are just trying to pass the baton and continue the marathon because the work will take time.”

TODAY has reached out to Okletsgo for comment.