Meeting of the Parliament 01 May 2018
I, too, thank Kezia Dugdale for bringing this important debate to the Parliament. I think that there is a strong recognition in the chamber this evening that we must do all that we can to dramatically improve the situation that victims of rape are experiencing, from the support that is provided to them and the public perception and understanding of the crime to the way in which our criminal justice system deals with these heinous crimes.
It is hugely frustrating that the conviction rate for rape, including cases that have the required corroboration, remains significantly lower than the rates for other crimes. Research is being undertaken on jury decision making, and it is important that that includes the role of the jury in rape cases in order to help to inform any future reforms.
I recognise the commitment of the Crown Office and the Solicitor General, who has spent her career fighting for justice for victims of rape and sexual assault, but the recent change in policy is very concerning. Rape Crisis Scotland remains concerned that it will lead to victims retracting their complaint and that the policy does not recognise that the criminal justice process itself is causing the problem.
I attended the Crown Office briefing in Parliament the other week, and what struck me as the Solicitor General talked about the experience of supporting a reluctant rape complainer was the degree of experience, expertise, empathy, judgment and commitment that is required to convince a victim who does not want to present evidence in court to continue with the trial. In the chamber last week, the Solicitor General said that she had not come across a case where the policy would be used in the past 10 years. A situation where the victim would be arrested or even imprisoned seems so unlikely and so against everything that the Crown Office wants to achieve that it appears unnecessary, unless it is to act as a threat or a warning to the victim, which is not justifiable as a way to treat victims of rape.
As Jenny Gilruth described, Fife Rape And Sexual Assault Centre had to close its waiting list in December after being overwhelmed by rising demand for its service. In Fife, 893 sexual crimes were reported last year, but we know that the real figure will be higher. The Rape and Sexual Abuse Centre Perth and Kinross contacted me yesterday, and between April 2017 and March 2018 its support service saw an 8 per cent increase in demand. As it becomes increasingly challenging to secure funding, the centre has had to cut a support post, and its waiting times are increasing.
I raised the situation in Fife with Angela Constance, and in a reply to me she said that “Equally Safe—A Delivery Plan for Scotland’s Strategy to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls” commits to a review of funding and commissioning. That review must fully recognise the need to address waiting times, funding pressures and staffing difficulties.
The manager of the Fife centre, Jan Swan, spoke to me about the difficulty that the centre has with recruiting support workers, volunteers and fundraisers. The field is not an easy one to work in. Fife has well-supported charities with many volunteers working in food banks, with children and family groups and with older people, but it is more challenging for rape crisis centres to recruit volunteers for what can be difficult work. We need to think about how we can support their efforts.
However, what we really need to think about is how we can stop the crime, which is only on the increase. Last year, I visited the Perth rape crisis centre’s 10-year exhibition, which was an exhibition to make people angry, emotional and uplifted. There were messages of hope and recovery, but also a clear demonstration of the injustice of sexual assault and rape. The centre does outreach work in local high schools, challenging young people’s ideas and encouraging them to interrogate their views on sex. It is speaking to the next generation to try to change their prejudices and behaviour. That work is not core funded, but it is essential if we are to see change.
One of the most affecting displays in the exhibition was a rail of women’s clothes, representing the clothes that women were wearing when they were raped. There was a flannel nightie, a pair of jeans and a wedding dress, and clothes that reflected women of all ages and all social classes. The crime reaches all parts of our society. It is one that we must confront and one for which victims need to have justice.
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