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Single autistic mother of three awesome autistic kids. These are my anonymous ramblings about life, love, parenting and the rest – emptying my head of the weird, the wonderful and the mundane. Hope you enjoy.

Friday 16 March 2012

We believe you

I wanted to join this blog hop because I was so, so shocked by this:

http://www.guardian.co.uk/society/2012/mar/13/woman-retracted-rape-claim-husband?newsfeed=true

A woman, who had the bravery to report repeated rape (including being forced by her rapist to work in a brothel) goes to prison because under pressure from her rapist and his sister, withdraws those claims. The judge even accepts that she was suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, a recognised psychiatric disorder, and yet her criminal conviction is upheld.

How can this possibly be in the public interest? Do they really think that sending a woman to prison for withdrawing a rape claim will encourage more victims to report? It seems much more likely they would be terrified to even mention it in the first place.

Her husband, her rapist - despite the fact that having been raped by him was the very premise of her conviction - has never been convicted. So his crime of rape, can be accepted in law as having indisputably taken place, and he receives no conviction - yet she, whose actions are entirely explained by the fear instilled in her by someone who had abused her for years, is sent to prison for perverting the course of justice? No right thinking human being can see this as justice. Had the legal system any concept of the affects on victims of abuse, a judge would not be questioning her actions at all. Instead, he would be ensuring her husband was arrested for rape and perverting the course of justice . As one poignant comment from Helen Lewis on Twitter noted:

"As she was taken to prison, her husband - who a Judge accepted had raped her - picked up their children from school"

People's attitudes to rape have to change now. The legal system's in built prejudices about rape have to change now.

Sarah, I admire your courage, I abhor your treatment by the law and your husband, and I send to you every good wish for the future for you and your children. We believe you.


To join in this BlogHop please go to: http://saltandcaramel.com/index.php/2012/03/12/we-believeyou-mumsnet-rape-campaign/

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