Statistics not part of gender war

YOUR report on Jackie Hayden’s book, A Man in a Woman’s World (December 10), says he was the first man to hold the position of chairperson in the Rape Crisis Network.

This is not true.

Joe Robbins was chairman of the board of Dublin Rape Crisis Centre (DRCC) in the 1990s.

Brendan Spring is the current chairman of the DRCC board.

Jackie Hayden was chairman of the board of Wexford Rape Crisis Centre, one of 16 centres that make up the Rape Crisis Network of Ireland.

There are many other organisations as well as rape crisis centres working in this area and all are doing excellent work.

In his book, Mr Hayden describes how, after eight years of working in a voluntary capacity in the Wexford Rape Crisis Centre, he felt deflated to discover that “some women I had met, worked with and supported had in time revealed themselves as harbouring a cynicism about men in general that was profound and far-reaching”.

However, he then goes on to say that “this view doesn’t correspond in any way with my own personal experience, nor does it do any justice to the women I’ve met socially, domestically and through my work in the music industry, the media and, indeed, in women’s aid organisations”.

His book is full of contradictions. On the one hand, he claimed to have

encountered an underlying prejudice against men in the Violence Against Women sector while, on the other hand, he was continually complimentary when describing his own experiences of working with the women on the ground. He described how his involvement in the Wexford centre was “educational, not least in that I witnessed the depth and range of suffering experienced by those who need the services of such centres. But I also saw the enormous courage the counsellors show in helping their clients to deal with the long-term effects of rape and sexual abuse.”

The research from the National Crime Council and ESRI, Domestic Abuse of Women and Men in Ireland, 2005, shows that one in seven women, compared to one in 17 men, experience severe domestic violence.

Women are over twice as likely as men to have experienced severe physical abuse, seven times more likely to have experienced sexual abuse and are more likely to experience serious injuries than men.

These statistics are a true reflection of what is really happening on the ground and not “ammunition in some kind of gender war”, as claimed by Mr Hayden.

With the launch of the new Cosc office, which is an all-of-government response to domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in Ireland, and with the continued support of the NGOs working in the area, the hope would be that these women and men will be believed and supported in breaking out of the circle of violence and abuse.

The Dublin Rape Crisis Centre provides services for both women and men. The National Helpline is 1 800 77 8888.

Ellen O’Malley-Dunlop

Chief Executive

Dublin Rape Crisis Centre

70 Lr Leeson Street

Dublin 2.