Sexual abuse of children in Ireland

[St Disibod]

Rather than risk dragging another thread off course, here's a different one to answer the question posed here:

First of all, correct me if I am wrong, but does the name suggest that "One in Four" people have been sexually abused, because I would seriously question those figures.

It does indeed. Their website details the source (see here).

In Ireland research has shown that one in four children (27%) will experience sexual abuse before the age of 18 (view source of this statisitc). Society has thus far been unwilling to face up to the deep rooted nature of this problem or the sheer scale of the long term damage it leaves in its wake.

This appears to be accurate. The Departments of Justice and Health funded a report entitled The Sexual Abuse and Violence in Ireland, published in 2002 (see here for the entire report).

xxxii-xxxiii[/i],]Prevalence of Sexual Violence

Child Sexual Abuse (defined as sexual abuse of children and adolescents under age 17 years)

• Girls: One in five women (20.4 per cent) reported experiencing contact sexual abuse in childhood with a further one in ten (10.0 per cent) reporting non-contact sexual abuse. In over a quarter of cases of contact abuse (i.e. 5.6 per cent of all girls), the abuse involved penetrative sex — either vaginal, anal or oral sex.

• Boys: One in six men (16.2 per cent) reported experiencing contact sexual abuse in childhood with a further one in four-teen (7.4 per cent) reporting non-contact sexual abuse. In one of every six cases of contact abuse (i.e. 2.7 per cent of all boys), the abuse involved penetrative sex — either anal or oral sex.

xxxv[/i]]Characteristics of Perpetrators and Context of Sexual Violence

• Most perpetrators of child sexual abuse (89 per cent) were men acting alone. Seven per cent of children were abused by one female perpetrator. In 4 per cent of cases more than one abuser was involved in the same incident(s).

Perpetrators of Child Sexual Abuse

• Girls: A quarter (24 per cent) of perpetrators against girls were family members, half (52 per cent) were non-family but known to the abused girl and a quarter (24 per cent) were strangers.

• Boys: Fewer family members were involved in child sexual abuse of boys. One in seven perpetrators (14 per cent) was a family member with two-thirds (66 per cent) non-family but known to the abused boy. One in five (20 per cent) were strangers.

• In sum, in four-fifths of cases of child sexual abuse, the perpe-trator was known to the abused person.

• The perpetrator was another child or adolescent (17 years old or younger) in one out of every four cases.

[readytogo]

bump!