Three days after issuing an understated apology regarding allegations of sexual misconduct against them, the pop-rock band Ang Bandang Shirley posted another statement on their Facebook page. This time, three of the band members namely Owen Alvero, Ean Aguila and Joe Fontanilla “categorically deny any insinuations of predatory behavior or sexual abuse.”
“However our misconduct contributes to a larger culture of toxic masculinity that allows for these problems to perpetuate. We recognize our individual accountabilities and we want to exonerate our other bandmates who were unfortunately dragged into this matter,” they said in their collective statement.
“Serious allegations have been made, and there needs to be clear owning up to the aforementioned accountabilities, while taking into consideration the privacy of offended parties whom we have been able to reach out to.”
Individually, each of the three guys also issued their own statements, each feeling remorse for things they have said and done that made women close to them uncomfortable.
“I have hurt people with my words and actions, and I have nothing but regret for causing emotional pain to people I love. I have disregarded the feelings of others, selfishly and repeatedly, and although I have been trying to do better, I know that damage has been done and for that lets very sorry. lees trying to put this in the past and move forward a better person,” Alvero posted.
“It was my goal to balance my openness about sex with being respectful. In aiming to be open about sex, I tried to encourage those around me to be comfortable talking about it. I wanted it to stop being taboo by trying to push conversational boundaries and being open with my sexual urges and feelings…This has resulted in making borderline-crass and inappropriate statements and I realize now that I have to change my ways. I have learned my lesson the hard way,” Aguila explained.
For his part, Fontanilla has this to say: “I was made aware that my actions have caused distress to people I care about. I am so sorry. It breaks my heart to know that individuals who had their trust and confidence in me were exposed to situations where they felt unsafe and taken advantage of. Misreading these situations despite having the best intentions caused my inflicting emotional and mental pain on them. This I had to learn the hard way and for that I am truly regretful.”
Just the same, the band as a whole reiterated their apology to everyone they have offended through their “words, actions and carelessness.”
Another band that was mentioned in the controversial Twitter thread about indie musicians engaged in sexual misconduct also issued a statement of denial against the woman who started the series of tweets.
In a Twitter post last Thursday, the Filipino soul fusion band Farewell Fair Weather responded to what they called “false accusations” toward made by University of the Philippines sociology student Adrienne Onday (Twitter account name @_tapsilog) against their lead guitarist Kim Hue Jin.
“First and foremost, we do not condone or tolerate any acts of lasciviousness to anyone. We acknowledge that this is a serious issue that needs to be addressed accordingly. However, the accusations against Jin are purely erroneous and invalid. We as the band have valid documentation to properly prove that Jin didn’t in any way make inappropriate advances towards Adrienne Onday,” they argued.
To prove their argument, the band attached screenshots of the conversations of Onday and Jin on the Facebook Messenger app dated July 12, 2015. The screenshots suggested a merely friendly conversation between Onday and Jin with no hint of anything sexual.
“We are saddened with what is happening, but by posting this we hope to give clarity to the situation and to those that have been falsely accused.”
Onday, however, tweeted Farewell Fair Weather back and stood her ground. “The conversation did not happen via chat. It happened via text. Sadly I am not anymore using the same phone from 2015-2016 which is why I do not have screenshots. I will try to look for one anyway but I remember this conversation distinctly because it made me anxious,” she replied.
