Justice Minister Naomi Long has launched a new social media campaign to challenge widespread misconceptions about rape and sexual assault, warning that harmful myths continue to prevent victims from reporting crimes and allow perpetrators to escape justice. The initiative, titled “Rape Myths = Real Harm,” forms part of the Department of Justice’s response to the landmark 2019 Gillen Review into serious sexual offences.
Challenging Myths Through Digital Graphics
The first phase of the campaign will see the publication of 12 graphics across the Department of Justice’s social media channels, designed to counter commonly held false beliefs about sexual violence. These materials will be shared by partner agencies including victim support organisations and criminal justice partners.
Announcing the initiative, Minister Long emphasised that rape myths continue to damage public understanding of sexual violence:
“Unfortunately, myths about rape are still widespread. They create shame, self-blame and, in many cases, prevent people from reporting these crimes, allowing perpetrators to escape justice.”
The Minister stressed that the campaign aligns with recommendations from Sir John Gillen’s independent review, which dedicated an entire chapter to examining how rape myths influence both society and jury verdicts:
“Sir John Gillen’s message was clear: rape myths shift blame from the perpetrator to the victim. My Department, alongside our partners, have developed a series of graphics to challenge these misconceptions. There is no typical victim. There is no typical response to trauma. Responsibility for rape or sexual assault lies solely with the perpetrator — never the victim. We all have a role in challenging these myths. Rape myths cause real harm. It’s up to all of us to shatter them.”
Reporting Rates and Justice Outcomes
The launch comes amid persistent concerns about sexual violence in Northern Ireland. According to the Department’s figures, 4,360 sexual crimes were reported to the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) during 2024/25. Of these, 2,238 involved child victims, 1,690 involved women, and 326 involved men. These reports led to 1,081 arrests and 297 charges—a 3% increase in arrests compared to the previous year.
However, this campaign launches against a backdrop of rising recorded sexual offences. Recent PSNI statistics show sexual offences increased by 4.4% in the 12 months to December 2025, and by 7.4% in the year to September 2025—the only major crime category to show consistent increases while overall crime rates fell to their lowest levels since 1998. The Public Prosecution Service received 1,613 files involving sexual offences during 2024/25, with rape offences accounting for 616 of these cases.
Landmark Review Underpins Initiative
The campaign directly addresses recommendations from the Gillen Review, which made 253 recommendations for reforming how Northern Ireland handles serious sexual offences. Sir John Gillen, who led the review following the 2018 Ulster Rugby rape trial, welcomed the Department’s initiative:
“Rape myths represent some of the greatest impediments to justice for all victims and survivors of domestic and sexual abuse, but especially for women and girls. They potentially poison the criminal justice investigation process and invest jury deliberations with false premises, rather than evidence, in serious sexual trials. They contribute enormously to the silent tolerance of domestic and sexual abuse that underpins a culture which fosters victim-blaming and minimises, or even excuses, sexual violence, particularly among men, to the extent that these harmful attitudes promote wilful ignorance and become falsely normalised. These rape myths are outrageously outdated tropes that deny years of intensive expert research on how victims should or should not respond to traumatic and violent sexual attacks. I know from my experience in interviewing many victims and survivors in the course of my Review in 2019 that the presence of rape myths is one of the reasons that victims feel so helpless, ashamed and consumed with self-blame. They feed their reluctance to report to police, or engage with the criminal justice system, allowing perpetrators to escape justice and repeat their crimes. With tiresome frequency, we as a community hide behind these myths and invoke them to look away and find some other reason not to speak out when confronted in plain sight by all the realities and trappings of domestic abuse and violence against women and girls. I strongly welcome this inspired DoJ campaign to challenge these myths. As Seamus Heaney said: ‘It is time to set the darkness echoing.'”
Support Services Welcome Initiative
Joanne Barnes, Chief Executive of Nexus NI—a leading organisation supporting survivors of sexual abuse—endorsed the campaign:
“Nexus NI welcomes this important step from the Department of Justice in taking forward the recommendations of the Gillen Review. Challenging the harmful myths that surround sexual violence is essential if we are to build a society where survivors are heard and supported, free from shame and stigma. This new social media campaign shines a light on the facts, counters long‑standing misconceptions and helps create space for informed, compassionate conversations. We fully support this initiative and the leadership shown in prioritising truth, education and the wellbeing of all those affected by sexual offences.”
Anyone affected by sexual violence can access support through the 24/7 Domestic and Sexual Abuse Helpline on 0808 802 1414, via email at [email protected], or through live chat at dsahelpline.org.
Unanswered Questions
While the campaign represents a visible commitment to changing attitudes, several questions remain about its scope and effectiveness:
- How will the Department of Justice measure whether this social media campaign actually changes attitudes or increases reporting rates, given that no evaluation framework or success metrics have been published?
- Given that over half of all sexual offences recorded by police involve children under 18, will there be specific resources targeting educational institutions and youth services beyond general social media posts?
- With sexual offences continuing to rise while other crime categories fall, is public awareness sufficient without parallel investment in investigative capacity, prosecution resources, and specialist victim support?
- How does this digital campaign plan to reach demographics less likely to engage with official government social media channels, particularly older adults or isolated communities?
- When will the specific rape myths being challenged be made public, and will the campaign address emerging issues such as technology-facilitated abuse and AI-generated imagery?
The Department has not indicated how long the “first phase” of the campaign will run, nor whether funding has been allocated for subsequent phases targeting specific communities or professional training. As implementation of the Gillen Review’s 253 recommendations continues across the criminal justice system, observers will watch to see whether this awareness-raising translates into tangible improvements in conviction rates and victim confidence.