We must clarify impact of sexual violence
ON JULY 13, baby Orla sprung into the world. Sleeping peacefully in his arms, a father is floored by the pure love he feels for this tiny creature, who has overnight transformed his world. He would do anything to protect her. Now explain to this father that in Ireland, it seems a man can actually confess to raping a woman like his daughter and still serve no time in prison.
Intimate partner sexual violence is a very difficult crime to prosecute, as usually it is one person’s word against another’s. The huge irony now appears to be that if the aggressor tells on himself then it is “exceptional” and a suspended sentence will follow.
The fact that an accused person admits to the crime of rape and sexual assault does not make the crime against his victim any the less serious or heinous, and the sentence should reflect this reality.
This was the story that played out in our courts earlier this month when Magnus Meyer Hustveit who admitted he regularly raped and sexually assaulted his girlfriend in her sleep received a suspended sentence of seven years imprisonment. The reason for the judge’s leniency appears to be that Hustveit admitted the extent of his guilt in emails to the victim and in court, and, without these admissions, it would have been impossible to prosecute him.
The survivor in this particular case Niamh Ní Domhnaill bravely waived her right to anonymity after the trial because she wanted to raise awareness that rape when a person is asleep is still rape.
“This is not about me or Magnus but a wider system that is far, far too lenient on perpetrators on what is supposed to be one of the worst crimes you can commit,” Niamh rightly pointed out.
What message does this case send to people raped by intimate partners or raped while unconscious: don’t report; don’t prosecute? What signal does it send about appropriate punishment for perpetrators of sexual violence in Ireland? What message does the suspended sentence send to would-be perpetrators?
One reason for our low conviction record for rape is because of lack of evidence other than the survivor’s own testimony. A second reason for our low conviction record might well be a societal disregard for the bodily autonomy of survivors and societal norms that support male superiority and sexual entitlement. How is it that so many can feel compassion for the perpetrator rather than his victim? We need to tackle this problem in our society from a variety of perspectives and not leave it up to individual survivors, to brave the criminal justice system to get justice.
The responsibility should not fall on these women to waive their right to anonymity so as to encourage others to break their silence. The responsibility lies with all of us.
The vast majority of men abhor violence against women, but we need to hear their disenting voices more frequently in our public discourse. More people need to say something and speak out against rape. We need to stop with victim blaming and look at the underlying attitudes at a societal level.
Sharing a bed with someone does not automatically grant consent. Flirting with someone does not automatically grant consent. Having sex with someone previously does not automatically confer future consent. Sex without consent is rape. The impact on the victim should not be lightly dismissed. Yet it constantly appears to be, especially with the latest ruling.
A groundbreaking sexual abuse and violence study in Ireland in 2002 put centre stage the stark reality of the prevalence of sexual violence at the time. Interviewing over 3,000 adults about their experiences of sexual violence as children or as adults, the study became the constant reference point for everyone in this country when they talked about sexual abuse in Ireland.
It told us that over the lifetime of Irish women, 10% would be the victim of rape, while 3% of Irish men would be victims of the same crime. It highlighted childhood sexual abuse before other reports, such as the Ferns, Ryan, Murphy and Cloyne Reports, validated the stories of victims of sexual violence and shocked the country.
Well over a decade later, sexual violence, and attitudes towards it, have changed in Ireland from an increase in the use of internet and mobile phones, human trafficing and exposure to prostitution, sexualisation for adults and children, population changes, and poverty. Yet the impact that these drastic changes have had on our sexual violence landscape remains unexamined.
A second follow-up study would make the comparison with the first baseline data, providing a true picture of the prevelence of sexual violence in Ireland today. Without a follow up study, we are reliant on an outdated picture of sexual violence, and we don’t have any sense of whether legislation and initiatives — such as education in schools — are having any impact. Determining where to efficiently allocate limited resources is paramount.
Costing €900,000 to undertake this substantial piece of research, detractors argue the budget would have more bang for buck on sexual assault service provision. But without a follow up study the Irish justice, health and education systems, and service providers such as the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre, are effectively working in a vacuum without an evidence base on which to guide service provision investment. How can we tell whether money invested in services has been well spent? How is it the Government can see the value of spending €900,000 to refurbish the Irish embassy in Paris, yet not the significance of clarifying the sexual violence landscape in Ireland in 2015? To put the €900,000 cost of the study in perspective, consider the White House’s recent estimate that a single sexual assault can cost anywhere between $87,000 (€78,300) and $240,000.
They estimated that victims spend an average of $500 to $8,000 in medical costs , $2,400 for mental health-related services, and lose up to 11 days of paid work as a consequence of the physical and mental strain following an assault. Leveraging the learning of the €900,000 study to help prevent sexual assault in the first place and support survivors is clearly a smarter return on investment.
A society will be judged on the basis of how it treats all of its most vulnerable. What story should we tell our little girls about our general tolerance of sexual violence, against Ireland is awakening and acknowledging the sexual abuse and violence that is within our society. We are starting to be more focused in our efforts, with the establishment of various agencies, but we need to do more to raise awareness of this problem. We need to all stand up and say enough is enough.
Ellen O’Malley-Dunlop is CEO of the Dublin Rape Crisis Centre. The National 24-hour helpline for victims of rape and sexual assault is 1800 77 88 88.
