Mark Bautista talked about his autobiography “Beyond The Mark” for the first time on a televised interview wherein he revealed that he was a victim of sexual abuse when he was still a kid.
On the episode of Kapuso Mo Jessica Soho aired on Sunday, the singer-actor said that he decided to publish his book because he wanted to be more comfortable true to himself.
“I think telling people about my struggle [was one of the main reasons for writing the book] and part na nun yung pag-come out. That time, sobrang naibuhos ko lang yung gustong sabihin at nararamdaman ng puso ko,” he said.
In his book, Bautista came out as bisexual and said that he “loves both sexes”.
Bautista, who played the role of Ferdinand Marcos in the the West End and Seattle productions of “Here Lies Love”, said that he would like to be more open, because, according to him, it was already starting to affect his work.
“Nag-decide ako na gawin ‘to [the book] nung in-offer sa akin yung Seattle, Washington na show na Here Lies Love.
“Dun ako nag-decide na parang, ‘Okay, dito sa trabaho na ‘to, gusto ko maging mas open ako sa cast mates ko kasi naramdaman ko nung nag-London ako na ang dami ko pa ring walls.
“This is is the perfect time na mas maging relaxed ako sa environment ko,” he said.
In the same interview, Bautista also admitted that a “distant cousin” sexually assaulted him when he was only six or seven years old.
“I would consider it more of an assault. For the longest time, never ko ‘yan napag-usapan even sa family ko, even sa mga kaibigan ko.
“May pressure, naging aggressive yung distant cousin ko. In-expose niya yung sarili niya sa akin, parang pinipilit niya ako to do a sexual act.
“Ganun yung nangyari pero natakasan ko yun pero ang daming tanong sa isip ko, but I think sa edad ko rin na yun, hindi pa ganun kalalim yung pag-intindi ko sa mga ganun bagay, so parang kinalimutan ko na lang siya,” Baustista shared.
Soho stressed on Bautista’s revelation to also give awareness to the issue of child molestation in the Philippines, to which the latter replied by giving a piece of advice to parents.
“Pag nakakakita ako ng bata na naglalaro sa lansangan, or alam kong parang napapabayaan ng parents… parang nato-trauma ako, I don’t know.
“Sabi ko, just be careful with the people that surround your kid. Kilalanin siguro yung mga taong pumapaligid sa mga anak niyo, kasi minsan it’s beyond the parents’ control or the kid’s control.
“Talagang nasa tao iyan na dapat sana intindihin niyo yung effect niyan sa bata,” he said.
Bautista said that what happened to him as a child did not affect his personality but he considers it as a major part of his life growing up.
“I would like to believe na hindi, pero major part siya sa nangyayari sa buhay ko, kasi bata ako and sobrang innocent ng isip mo, and may bahid na ganun as you grow up,” he said.
The singer-actor also clarified that he has no bad intentions with publishing his book. It can be recalled that “Beyond The Mark” created a buzz online after Bautista said that he had an “intimate relationship” with a guy friend at one point.
“It’s not my intention to out anyone. You have to respect each other’s journey and being silent can also be authentic.
“If you’re silent, then there’s nothing wrong with that, so I respect that. Sana respetuhin din ng mga tao. Ito yung nature ko, e. Hindi ako komportable pag masyado akong maraming walls.
“Nakikita ko na parang ang dami palang tao na dumadaan sa same story nung sa akin, so in one way or the other, baka nakatulong din ako sa kanila,” Bautista said.
