Facts about Sexual Abuse in New Zealand

Still think that fathers don't commit sexual abuse in any great numbers? According to the Wellington [New Zealand] Rape Crisis Centre, around a quarter of all the rape and sexual abuse victims that came to them for services reported having been raped by their father.

http://gfrerichs.typepad.com/sashui/2010/06/facts-about-sexual-abuse.html#tp

15/06/2010
Facts About Sexual Abuse

Approximately 20% of females and 10% of males in New Zealand have experienced childhood sexual abuse. [1]

Globally, at least one in three women and girls is beaten or sexually abused in her lifetime.[2]

One in Three girls before the age of sixteen are likely to be sexually abused. One in four women are likely to experience some form of unwanted sexual abuse as adults.[3]

Less than 40% of survivors of sexual abuse are likely to disclose the abuse.[4]

The cost of child sexual abuse in New Zealand was estimated by Shirley Julich (2004) to be 2.6 billion per year.[5]

A 2007 study found that the overall prevalence rate for childhood sexual abuse is 23.5% in Auckland and 28.2% in Waikato. Maori women reported even higher than European women and those of other ethnic groups; Auckland 30.5% - 17.0% and Waikato 35.1% - 20.7%. 50% of those who experienced childhood sexual abuse reported that it occurred once or twice, 27% “a few times” and 23% “multiple times”. Sole perpetrators were involved in 83% of the cases. The majority of cases were perpetrated by a family member, most frequently a male. The median age of victims of child sexual abuse is 9years old and perpetrators 21 years or older.[6]

Almost half of the survivors (46.6%) contacting Rape Crisis Centres between 1992 and 1996 identified blood relatives as the offenders. Of these, 49.1% were identified as the survivor’s father.[7]

64% of women are victimised by a current or former husband, cohabiting partner, boyfriend, or date.[8]

One in Five children are solicited sexually while on the internet.[9]

National Government instituted changes to ACC founded counselling for survivors of sexual abuse in October 2009. Since the changes, the number of survivors approved for government funded sexual abuse counselling has fallen from nearly 300 a month to less than 12.[10]

The co-chair of the national sexual violence network, Dr. Kim McGregor, said almost all of the 600-700 private counsellors who were registered with ACC-funded work had stopped taking applicants for ACC subsidies since the new rules took effect because of an ethical objection to labelling assault victims as mentally ill.[11]

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[1] www.aucklandtherapy.co.nz

[2]UN Commission on the status of women - www.feminist.com/antiviolence/facts.html

[3] Mullen et al, The Otago Women’s Health Survey, 1991 – www.mrsac.org.nz/index.php/research-and-statistics

[4] Mullen et al, The Otago Women’s Health survey, 1991 - www.mrsac.org.nz/index.php/research-and-statistics

[5] www.mrsac.org.nz/index.php/research-and-statistics

[6] Fanslow JL, Robinson EM, Crengle S, Perese L. (2007). Prevalence of child sexual abuse reported by a cross-sectional sample of New Zealand women. Child Abuse & Neglect 3. – www.fmhs.auckland.ac.nz/soph/centres/ipic

[7] Wellington Independent Rape Crisis Centre, Information about Rape and Sexual Abuse for Women Survivors and their family and friends, put together by Jo Niblett and updated and revised by Georgina Thompson and Tanya Newman.

[8] National Violence against women Survey, U.S, 2000 – www.feminist.com/antiviolence/facts.html

[9] www.darkness2light.org– U.S figure

[10] Lynne Pillay, April 1, 2010, “Clinicians reject Smith’s ACC sexual abuse guidelines” – www.labour.org.nz

[11] Simon Collins, April 27, 2010, “Denied help for sexual abuse, dead days later” – www.nzherald.co.nz