Friday, November 19, 2010

‘Shocking’ figures in child sex abuse cases

SEVEN out of 10 child sex abuse victims who sought help from rape crisis centres last year were assaulted by more than one person.

The Rape Crisis Network of Ireland (RCNI), which compiled the statistics, said they were "shocked" by the findings.

The figure comes as separate statistics reveal that only 22 out of 98 convicted sex offenders, eligible for release between last month and next September, have undergone any sex offender programme while in jail.

Fine Gael justice spokesman Alan Shatter, who released the figures, said the public would be "very concerned" by the revelations.

RCNI director Fiona Neary said 69% of survivors who attended rape crisis centres in 2009 and who had been sexually abused as a child had been assaulted for more than one perpetrators.

"We have to say, even within the rape crisis sector, this figure shocked us," said Ms Neary. "We didn’t quite believe it and checked it and it’s valid. We have to keep an eye on this figure, this level of multiple abuse."

Ms Neary said 1,588 people received counselling and support from 13 rape crisis centres in 2009.

"Hundreds and hundreds of women, men and teenagers continue to contact rape crisis centres every year in Ireland. Most are seeking help for abuse that happened in their childhood, by someone in their family, and that abuse is still affecting their daily lives. For another one-third of survivors they have been raped as an adult. Rape and child sexual abuse remain common and endemic in Ireland."

Some 60% of people seeking help were abused as a child and it generally took them 20 years to seek help. Some 30% were attacked as an adult, while 9% were violated both as a child and an adult.

Ms Neary said one positive development was a sharp rise in the number of survivors who reported their crime to the gardaí: 38% of adult survivors and 22% of people abused as a child.

This compares to 2002 figures of 6% and 8% respectively. "This is fantastic and a vindication of gardaí and the work they do," said Ms Neary.

She said that by the end of 2009, 190 former patients of former surgeon Michael Shine had contacting centres alleging sexual assault and that 90 allegations were being investigated by gardaí.

She said they wanted to see full implementation to last year’s Ryan and Murphy reports, including the hiring of the necessary social workers. She also warned about cutting budgets to rape support and family support services.

"It’s not about causing panic, but the reality is if people are not supported to tell, if not support to report, perpetrators will not be held to account, so we’ve got to find other ways to keep these supports in place. Of course we are very concerned if any of these supports would be stripped back from families, because the majority of the abuse in the family home."

Professor of History at UCD Diarmuid Ferriter said thanks to research like this and the Ryan report "never again can it be said we did not know what was happening". He said the country should begin to treat this as a "national crisis".

Rape findings: Stark reality of sex abuse

* Nine out of 10 survivors seeking help from rape crisis centres knew the perpetrator.

* Half of survivors sexually abused as a child were attacked by a family member.

* Only 3% of children abused were assaulted by a stranger.

* More than 30% of boys abused were abused by an authority figure, compared with 5% of girls.

* One in 10 female survivors experienced sexual violence as both a child and adult.

* More than 70% of children abused were abused over a period of years, compared with 22% of adult survivors.

SIC: IE/IE