More than two thirds of rape and sexual assaults still go unreported, according to figures released by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre. Publishing its annual statistics for last year, the Centre called for the provision of independent legal representation for all people who report sexual assaults to the Gardaí.
It is difficult to estimate the actual incidence of sexual violence in this country, but figures released by the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, show that calls to its crisis line increased by 12.5% last year. The figures also show that almost four in five women who contacted the Centre had been raped or sexually assaulted by someone they knew. Ninety-eight percent of abused children knew their attacker. This is one reason, the Centre suggests, that so many sexual crimes go unreported.
It was also revealed that 14% of clients attending the Centre last year were male. Half of that number had experienced sexual assault as adults. For the first time date rape was included in the figures. Eight percent of clients experienced this type of assault. Rape crisis centres across the country say that they are inundated with calls for help from victims of sexual violence.
