Should laws allow the publication of the names of victims of rape?

Pro: The community has a right to know the identities of not only the defendants but also the plaintiffs.

Pro: Publicizing the identity of the accused but not of the accuser is unfair.

Reply: Those who have been accused of a crime have a right to know the identities of their accusers. The names of plaintiffs are known to the authorities and specifically to the court and the defendant. Publicizing identities of alleged victims of rape would create psychic pain for those individuals and would afford no benefit to the community.

Pro: Given a policy that prevents the revelation of the identities of those who make charges against others, there is a likelihood that certain individuals will make false charges and not suffer consequences as severe as those experienced by the defendant, whose reputation is damaged.

Reply: While the identity of a plaintiff would not be revealed by media, and the identity of the defendant would be, the plaintiff still faces severe penalties for perjury.

Con: The publication of the names of rape victims may embarrass the victims and cause them added pain.

Pro: Although the publication of the names of rape victims may embarrass the victims and cause them added pain, the eventual result of the policy will be the removal of the stigma of being raped and the strengthening of public opinion against the crime.

Reply: Publicizing the names of victims of rape is unlikely to remove the stigma from the victims, or if it did, the damage done by the revelation would be far greater than any benefit obtained.

Con: The individual has a right to privacy.

Con: If names of rape victims are publicized, fewer rapes would be reported to the police, and therefore more rapists would escape prosecution.