Significant rise in calls to helpline

THERE was a 60% jump in the number of phone calls to the Crime Victims’ Helpline in the first three months of this year.

New figures show that 479 calls were made in the first quarter of 2007, compared to 295 in the same period last year.

Maeve Ryan, service co-ordinator with the helpline, said the rise was due to more people knowing about the service rather than a surge in crime.

“We believe the significance of the increase in the number of calls to the helpline is due to an increased awareness among members of the public resulting from our public information programme, which has been facilitated with the support of An Garda Síochána.”

She said victims of crime were informed about the service once they came in contact with gardaí.

“This programme is having a real impact on our activity levels and is proving that there is an increasing demand for the basic information and supports that are available to victims of crime in Ireland,” said Ms Ryan.

“We are also conscious that there are many people who could benefit from having some practical information and basic assistance but may be hesitant to make contact with services, because they don’t know where to start. Volunteers on the helpline are able to assist victims in taking the first step in telling their story and finding out where further assistance is available for them.”

She said the helpline provided the opportunity for people who were feeling isolated, anxious, angry, sad, nervous and afraid as a result of a crime to find emotional support on the phone.

She said others might have questions about the justice system or ask for information on local services.

“We deal with all types of crime, principally robberies, burglaries, assault and harassment. There are also people who are victims of sexual abuse, domestic violence. There are also families suffering the loss of a family member, robberies of mobile phones, etc.”

She said the emotional impact of crime could be serious. “If you take something like antisocial behaviour, where people can’t come and go into their own home, that can be really traumatic.”

She said some people were afraid to report a crime for fear of retaliation while others who do report a crime might sometimes experience intimidation.

“Our advice is to tell gardaí everything. Sometimes they can give reassurance.”

She said difficulties and frustration dealing with the criminal justice system came up “again and again” in dealing with victims.

She said that “unfortunately” slow progress was part of the system.

Ms Ryan said gardaí had taken a lot of steps to improve people’s access to them and had given people a number to access their file on the Garda Pulse computer system.

Helpline numbers

* 1,380 calls to the Crime Victims’ Helpline last year

* 600 calls so far this year

* National Helpline 1850-211407

* Helpline opening hours: Monday to Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday 2pm-4pm

* www.crimevictimshelpline.ie