Mick Clifford: Concern for sexual violence victims is only rhetoric without true support

Concern for those who have been traumatised by sexual violence certainly gets plenty of airing but when the lived experience doesn’t tally with all this concern, the empathetic rhetoric counts for very little

Grace and Siobhan Odumosu who, along with their sister and cousin, were sexually asaulted by their uncle Patrick Caffrey over a sustained period of time. Picture: Moya Nolan

Early on in the week, an article in a legal journal was published calling for the “rebalancing” of criminal trials in order to protect the rights of the victims of sexual violence. The piece was co-authored by Supreme Court judge Peter Charleton. On Tuesday, the annual conference of the Association of Garda Sergeants and Inspectors heard a call for face-to-face training for gardaí dealing with victims of sexual and domestic violence.

On Wednesday, the Minister for Justice announced that under new legislation gardaí can disclose information relating to a person on the sex offenders register in situations where there is a serious threat to public safety. In the round, it was another week in which the interests and concerns of the victims of sexual violence were given due consideration in the public square.