A national inquiry gives a voice to rape victims for the first time. The alarming results show that children are the most vulnerable to this violence.
It is a very dark picture that draws up Traumatic Memory and Victimology. In a survey carried out with the support of UNICEF, the association gives, for the first time, a voice to victims of sexual violence, and is interested in their long-term journeys. 1,214 people, 95% of whom were women, shared their traumatic experience with the association.
Children most affected
In France, one in five women is the victim of sexual assault. But this violence also concerns, although to a lesser extent, men. 1 in 14 men have suffered a sexual attack in their lifetime.
However, it is when we look at the age of the victims that the finding becomes really alarming. In fact, in 81% of the cases of sexual violence analyzed, the victim was under 18 years old. Worse, one in two was under eleven, and one in five under six.
These children are all the more vulnerable since the aggressor is, in more than 90% of cases, a close relative. These unbearable family situations often prevent children from rebuilding themselves or from finding the help they need.
Beyond preconceived ideas, the survey also points to another worrying phenomenon: children are not only the victims of these cases. Indeed, a quarter of the aggressors are minors. This observation should lead parents, associations and public authorities to reopen the debate on the issue of sexual violence, and its support.
Numerous suicide attempts
The trauma suffered by those raped during childhood follows it throughout their lives, and can have very serious consequences on their mental or physical health, in the absence of appropriate follow-up.
96% of them say they have been affected mentally, with sleep disorders, anxiety, depression to suicidal thoughts … 41% of victims would have made a suicide attempt At least once in her life.
To a lesser extent, the victims also suffer from physical problems, in particular chronic fatigue, fibromyalgia or, in some cases, complications in the functioning of the urogenital system.
Awareness needed
Despite the emergency, Mémoire Traumatique et Victimolgie believes that the support and support mechanisms for victims are not yet sufficient in France.
In many cases, the victims interviewed said that they had not received the listening, advice and psychological support, but also legal support, which they needed. The Department of Justice lists on his site all the rights of victims and explains the legal process to them. But the devices are still limited, in particular by the lack of training of medical, social and legal actors.
The authors of the survey therefore hope that their results will make the authorities react and emerge a real awareness of these problems among the public.
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