We are calling on the government to create a national development plan to tackle the epidemic of gender-based violence in Ireland. We believe that the creation of an official body is essential to the implementation of this plan. The push for policy to support victims and to decrease instances of abuse should not be the sole responsibility of advocacy groups. 

Statistics on sexual harassment in Ireland:

• Over 80% of sexual violence crimes in 2018 involved a male suspect and a female victim (CSO Recorded Crime Victims 2019 and Suspected Offenders 2018)
• 32% of women from the ages of 18 to 34 experienced at least one form of sexual harassment within a 12 month period in 2019 (WIN International)
• Almost 1 in 3 female students at Irish universities reported being raped in a survey by NUI Galway’s Active Consent Programme in partnership with the Union of Students in Ireland (Survey by NUIG's Active Consent Programme and the USI)

Women should no longer be forced to alter their clothing, routes or behaviour. The narrative of asking women to protect themselves instead of challenging perpetrators is both degrading and normalises the issue. It is time to take action to end gender-based harassment. Please sign and share our petition to support this cause. 

About us: 

We are Nora and Nicole, two 19 year old politics and international relations students who have recently founded ‘Gach Bean’ (@gachbean on Instagram). This name challenges the individual to reject the “not all men” argument denouncing sexual harassment and replacing it with the reality of it affecting “every woman”.