16 Dec 2015

Ireland Has No Official Male Domestic Violence Statistics

By Toy Soldiers: Apparently Ireland does not track the number of domestic violence complaints made by men. According to a recent article:

THE GOVERNMENT HAS been criticised after it has emerged that official statistics for the rate of domestic violence against men are not available.
This follows a parliamentary question asked by Sinn Féin spokesperson for finance Pearse Doherty.
After requesting the statistics for incidents of domestic violence against men reported to the gardaí last year, the Deputy was informed by the Central Statistic Office that such data was not available.
Speaking about the response he received, he said, “Given the increased awareness of the problem of domestic violence which we’ve seen in recent years, I decided to raise the issue of domestic violence and abuse perpetrated against male victims as I felt that the issue needed to be highlighted.”

He went on to state: This appalling absence of updated information on domestic violence crime rates is inexplicable and only further highlights the stigma which male victims of domestic violence and abuse experience.

It is curious how this could happen. One would assume that men are less likely to report abuse and therefore expect to see low numbers. However, that does not explain how there are no numbers available. The only way that seems possible is if no one bothered to collect data from police departments or never bothered to collate the information.
It makes no sense given that there is a need and desire for services in Ireland for male victims. This speaks to the attitudes male victims and their advocates must face. No one wants to talk about this issue. Now even something as simple as tracking police reports now presents a problem.

Source

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