26 October 1999
The Deputy Minister was quoted in the press as saying that one in five men is a victim of rape. This statistic was quoted out of context.
The Deputy Minister prefaced her statement by saying that the current legal definition of rape is gender specific. She noted that proposed new legislation dealing with Sexual Offences includes a gender neutral definition of rape. According to this definition both men and women may become the victims (or perpetrators) of rape.
With this broader definition of rape, the impact on the incidence of reported rape could be dramatic. But it is precisely because of the current, narrow definition of rape that no statistics on male rape exist. People who work with victims of violence have indicated that male rape is not generally reported by male victims, but that a severe problem exists.
The Deputy Minister stressed that rape is an act of violence and an act of power over the victim. A gender-neutral definition of rape and an increased awareness about the incidence of male rape might serve to illustrate the non-sexual nature of rape.
The Deputy Minister referred to the under-reporting of male rape and tried to illustrate this point with a reference to preliminary indications suggesting that it might be as high as one in five men, but evidence is anecdotal and no reliable statistics are available at present.
The Deputy Minister tried to convey the message that as awareness of the incidence of male rape increased, there might emerge an increased sense of urgency around addressing and dealing with rape per se.
The Deputy Minister wishes to stress that sensationalising the issue of rape is counter productive. Her purpose was to sensitise the public to the existence of the problem and she regrets any confusion that may have resulted from her statement on 20 October, 1999.