The brutal murder of Ashling Murphy cast a renewed light on gender-based violence and started conversations about the violence women in all walks of life incur – including sex workers and vulnerable women.
The sexism and misogyny that pervades our society does not come from nowhere – it starts at the top – in our laws and our institutions – and it filters down into our media, culture and our daily lives.
We need to separate Church & State to ensure comprehensive consent-focused Sex Education in schools. Right-wing parties have also consistently failed to allocate adequate funding to frontline services.
We need a people power movement like Repeal to fight for a better world.
TO END GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE WE ARE CALLING FOR:
MORE WOMEN’S REFUGES
- Ireland signed up to the Istanbul Convention in 2015. Adherence to that convention would mean we should have 472 refuge places across the country. We only have 143.
- Nine counties in Ireland have no dedicated refuge.
- There were unmet requests for refuge from 1,351 women between March and August 2020.
ADEQUATE FUNDING FOR FRONT LINE SERVICES
- Ireland needs an increase of €33.1 million to provide the 331 refuge spaces needed.
- In ten years, there has been a 100% increase to Rape Crisis Centre helplines & a 63% increase in appointments. Massive underfunding of these centres is leading to an inability to recruit and retain counsellors resulting in long waiting lists for survivors.
SMASH SEXISM IN THE COURTS
- In Ireland 90% of Rapes are unreported. Only 14% of cases reported actually go to trial.
- Of the cases that do go to trial, many victims experience routine ‘Victim Blaming’. It is still considered a legitimate line of defence to question a victim’s sexual history, what they were wearing or how much they drank.
- It is legal for a victim’s private counselling notes to be used in a court case. No other crime permits therapy notes to be used against a witness.
- There are huge delays in getting to Court. For most cases it can take anything up to three or four years.
OBJECTIVE SEX EDUCATION IN SCHOOLS
- Consent focused
- Should include modules on gender and recognising sexism in media and in culture.
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC SUPPORTS FOR FAMILIES
- Build social and affordable housing – the housing crisis is keeping victims of domestic violence trapped with their abusers.
- Universally available childcare
- Properly resourced mental health services and supports
- Paid domestic violence leave
SEPARATE CHURCH AND STATE
- Religious institutions should have no involvement in the running of schools, hospitals, or any other public institutions.
Zoom Link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83476979113
