European report highlights Ireland's failures on violence against women

In a year that has seen eight women killed so far, the report stresses that urgent and sustained action is needed to prevent and combat the epidemic of violence against women in Ireland.

A new European report has identified a number of shortcomings in how Ireland deals with violence against women including "victim-blaming attitudes" and "trivialisation of violence".

In a year that has seen eight women killed so far, the report stresses that urgent and sustained action is needed to prevent and combat the epidemic of violence against women in Ireland.

The wide-ranging study commended some of the recent efforts by the State to tackle the issue but identified a number of problem areas including data collection, criminal law and prosecution, education, and funding for support services.

The report from the Council of Europe, which was published on Monday, is the first of its kind and evaluates Ireland's implementation of the Istanbul Convention which was ratified in 2019.

The Group of Experts on Action against Violence against Women and Domestic Violence (GREVIO), visited Ireland earlier this year for five days during which they held meetings and discussions with relevant bodies and entities.

The report found that Ireland is "significantly lagging behind" when it comes to data collection adding that information gathered by state agencies, departments, and specialist support services is "insufficient, disjointed" and as a result does not give an overall picture of the extent of the problem.

GREVIO found that there is no co-ordinated, multiagency response mechanism for most forms of violence against women which it said is aggrevated by lack of sharing of data on perpetrators and victims by the relevant stakeholders due to data-protection concerns.

Conversely, there is a legal obligation for therapists and support services to disclose in court their notes taken during sessions with victims upon the request of the defence or prosecutor.

This practice is identified as a disincentive for victims to come forward and seek the help they need.

"This obligation hampers the core work of women’s rights organisations because, by providing greatly needed psychological support to victims, these organisations may – paradoxically and unintentionally – contribute elements that can be used in court by the defence to discredit victims."

Ireland was praised for legal and policy measures that have been undertaken including introducing the offence of female genital mutilation, criminalising coercive control and forced marriage, and adopting a definition of rape based on the lack of consent.

However, the report found "victim-blaming attitudes and the trivialisaton of violence by police officers working outside divisional protective units".

GREVIO also highlighted reports of delays or unresponsiveness by Gardaí to domestic violence and sexual violence complaints.

In terms of prosecution of perpetrators, the committee expressed concern about worrying judicial and sentencing practices including the frequent application of lenient sentences or suspended/conditional sentences.

It stated that these practices "indicate that acts of violence against women are seen as offences of lower social danger".

Serious concerns were raised in relation to family courts where it was found that incidents of domestic violence were not properly taken into account when determining custody and visitation rights.

This included cases where the perpetrator has been convicted for acts of violence against the victim and/or her children.

Family courts generally do not consult criminal courts on whether criminal proceedings are pending against the perpetrator or have been brought in the past.

The report also highlighted the problematic use of the concept of 'parental alienation syndrome' with a view to minimising or ignoring the violence perpetrated.

"Equally concerning is the reported practice of equating the inability to protect children from domestic violence to lack of parental ability, putting the non-violent parent at risk of having her child taken away."

An Garda Síochána was commended for the creation of units that specialise in the investigation of serious forms of domestic and sexual violence, and the adoption of a risk-evaluation tool to determine the risk to domestic violence victims.

The 118-page report found that there is a gap between progressive policies and the reality on the ground.

The positive legislative efforts must be seen against the backdrop of "unique circumstances" in Ireland which include "legacies of abuse" in public institutions, the report said, citing the practice of symphysiotomy and the role of the Catholic Church in education.

"Both circumstances have a bearing on preventing and stemming impunity for acts of violence against women," it said, adding that the legacy of violence is still endured by thousands of victims today.

"No policy action on violence against women would be complete without addressing in full the abuse perpetrated, including its persisting effects."

GREVIO urged for more to be done through schools to teach children about the right to personal integrity and to ensure that schools teach subjects like Social Personal and Health Education and Relationship and Sexuality Education no matter what the school ethos.

In its recommendations, GREVIO called for an increase in the number of Sexual Assault Treatment Units and Rape Crisis Centres to meet the standard of the Istanbul Convention.

One third of Ireland was found to lack specialist shelters for victims of domestic violence, putting great strain on the existing shelters which are often operating at full capacity.

The report also recommended that vulnerability screening be routinely undertaken at the earliest possible moment for all international protection applicants.

Migrant women who are victims of domestic violence and are moved out of a direct provision centre must not lose their right to receive payments associated with their status.

The GREVIO report has been welcomed by the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission which said that violence against women is at crisis levels in Ireland.

"In order to better understand the nature and extent of violence against women, we need better data," said Chief Commissioner Sinéad Gibney.

"The last number of years has witnessed growing frustration around the alarming levels of domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in Ireland."

The National Womens Council of Ireland (NWCI) similarly praised the call for greater data collection.

"We’re also concerned that there is very little reliable data being collected, and that groups such as women in prostitution, Traveller women, and migrant women face additional barriers in accessing supports," said NWCI director, Orla O'Connor.

She added: "We are still far from being a society where women and girls live free from violence."