Lera Mandzyuk spoke about sexual abuse at the age of six

Candid confession on air

Ukrainian comedian Lera Mandzyuk publicly spoke for the first time about an episode of sexual abuse that happened to her in childhood. The humourist shared these memories during an interview with Masha Yefrosynina. According to her, when she was six years old, a distant relative made advances towards her.

Circumstances of the tragedy

Mandzyuk recalled that the incident took place in the summer before the start of the school year. The girl was visiting relatives together with her mother. As she was the only child there, she got bored and decided to go play outside. A man — her distant relative — immediately followed her. He offered the girl to pick pears and eat raspberries in the garden, to which Lera agreed.

«І я пішла з ним, і там сталася неприємна ситуація. Не люблю груші по сьогоднішній день… Цей чоловік виявився педофілом, я тоді не знала такого слова. Я не розуміла, що відбувається. Спочатку я подумала, що він хоче мене обійняти… З того моменту в мене була страшна травма: і страх, і заборона всього, що стосується сексу» (And I went with him, and an unpleasant situation happened there. I do not like pears to this day… This man turned out to be a pedophile, I did not know such a word back then. I did not understand what was happening. At first, I thought he wanted to hug me… From that moment on, I had a terrible trauma: both fear and a prohibition of everything related to sex), Mandzyuk confessed.

Witnessing violence

The comedian explained that the man did not force her to perform any actions. She was wearing a dress, and he was inserting his fingers into her genitals. According to Lera, this episode did not last long, and she managed to break free.

«Він не змушував мене нічого робити, я була у сукні, він сував пальці у статеві органи… Це тривало недовго, я змогла вирватись… Він досі живий. Коли я це згадала, я зрозуміла, чому я не носила сукні до 19 років» (He did not force me to do anything, I was in a dress, he was inserting his fingers into my genitals… It did not last long, I managed to break free… He is still alive. When I recalled this, I understood why I did not wear dresses until I was 19), Mandzyuk said.

Consequences for personality

Lera noted that she remained silent for a very long time about what had happened, considering it a secret. The girl was afraid that she would be scolded and worried that people's attitude towards her would change. She felt "dirty, somehow different" and convinced herself that it was her fault. This situation affected her not only as a child but also as a girl, a woman, and a stand-up comedian.

«Зараз я розумію, що я не винна, мені було шість років, я була дитина. І єдина людина, яка винна, це цей чоловік. Я тоді закрилась і вирішила нікому не казати, щоб мене не наказували» (Now I understand that I am not to blame, I was six years old, I was a child. And the only person who is to blame is this man. I closed up back then and decided not to tell anyone so that I would not be punished), the comedian told.

Change in attitude

Today, Lera Mandzyuk emphasises the importance of openness. She disagrees with the idea that such events should be hidden, that one should be ashamed or afraid to talk about them.