Reported sexual assaults hit record levels in Dunedin

Sexual  assaults in Dunedin are being reported in record numbers, as police and a support worker say international movements such as MeToo are contributing to the spike.

In the past three years, reports of sexual assault and related offences averaged about four per month in Dunedin Central.

However, in November last year, reports jumped to a record of 10 before reaching 11 in both February and June, the highest levels for a single month since the new police statistics system began.

The significant spike in reports coincided with the MeToo movement against sexual harassment and assault, which began to spread virally on social media in October last year.

A similar pattern is apparent in Dunedin North, where reports reached a record of nine in February this year, about three times more than average.

Meanwhile, figures released by police under the Official Information Act show the clearance rate for sexual assault in the Southern district remains low.

Of 1281 reports of sexual harassment received in the three years from 2015 to 2017 in Otago and Southland, 291 resulted in court action and 61 in non-court action after 180 days, representing a clearance rate of 27.5%, about 3% better than the national average over the same period.

Detective Inspector Stephen Wood, of Dunedin, said it was difficult to determine the exact reasons for the rise in sexual assault reports, but cited the Time's Up movement as one possible driver for increased reporting.

He said work undertaken by universities, schools, community groups and police might also have had an effect.

Time's Up was founded this year by Hollywood celebrities in response to the MeToo movement and the sexual abuse allegations against Harvey Weinstein, raising millions of dollars for a legal defence fund to support lower-income women affected by sexual harassment and sexual assault.

Asked about the low clearance rates, Det Insp Wood said sexual offences were inherently difficult to bring to court.

``By the very nature of most sexual offences there are often no witnesses, and obtaining sufficient evidence to prosecute can be an issue.

``They are also not always reported immediately and the time factor can hamper investigations.
``If a victim feels they will be re-traumatised, and is not wanting to proceed with a prosecution, then generally speaking, police will respect those wishes,'' Det Insp Wood said.

Rape Crisis Dunedin development co-ordinator Angelo Libeau said MeToo and related movements were likely to have contributed to the rise in Dunedin reports, but said even the 11 recorded in June were just the tip of the iceberg.

``Under-reporting is huge.''

Any woman or non-binary person who had been a victim of sexual violence could receive support and counselling from Rape Crisis, and there would be no pressure to report the incident to police, he said.

george.block@odt.co.nz

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