I Never Said Yes


I Never Said Yes

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This programme contains some scenes which some viewers may find upsetting.

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I'm investigating a crime that affects an astonishingly high number of people - rape.

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In Britain today, a woman is raped every ten minutes.

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That's six women, every hour of every day.

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Yet our conviction rates for this horrific crime are still low.

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According to the British Crime Survey,

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over 15,000 people reported being raped last year.

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But there were just over 1,000 convictions for rape.

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That's a massive difference.

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Why aren't we doing a better job

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of making sure that perpetrators are punished?

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How is our system failing victims so badly?

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'I met with young women who have survived rape,

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'to try and understand what it's like to live through.'

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He had a knife to my throat, and he told me

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if I don't have sex with him, he's going to rape me.

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I discovered that young people are more vulnerable

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because they often lack awareness.

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There are people out there that are doing this

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and don't even realise that they're committing a crime.

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And I confront the people in authority

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who are supposed to be putting rapists behind bars.

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Very often, people think it's because we don't believe them,

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but it's not.

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But, ultimately, I confront our own attitudes

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and prejudices about who really is to blame for rape.

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Rape is not easy to talk about,

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but it's a problem that's getting worse,

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especially for young people.

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A recent government campaign highlighted the issue.

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-BOY: Stop being weird.

-I don't want to.

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Stop! Look at her. She doesn't want to!

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I want to find out what's going on.

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I'm going to speak to women who are survivors of rape,

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to try to understand what effect it has on people's lives.

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I'm starting in Aberdeen. I'm meeting Sarah Scott, a young mum,

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who has agreed to speak openly to me about her attack two years ago.

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-Sarah?

-Yeah, hi.

-I'm Pips.

-Hi!

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'She hopes to encourage other women to come forward.'

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It would be nice to be able to let my guard down sometimes.

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To be able to just relax. I haven't relaxed since the day it happened.

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I just want to be the old Sarah, you know?

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Fun, happy, young girl.

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It was Christmas time and, like a lot of young people,

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Sarah and her sister were looking forward

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to celebrating with a big night out.

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But for Sarah, things went terribly wrong.

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It was like any other night.

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I met her at the nightclub. She was already drunk,

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and one of her friends had a VIP table upstairs.

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So there were, like, bottles of vodka on the tables.

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So I got drunk, very, very quickly.

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We all got, kind of, separated throughout the night -

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all of my friends, her flatmates, my sister.

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Looking for her sister in the nightclub,

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Sarah bumped into a guy who was a casual acquaintance

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and she asked if he could help her.

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He was like, "It's OK, they're at an after-party at my house."

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-So, I didn't doubt it. I had no reason to doubt him.

-You knew him?

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I didn't know him well, but why would someone lie about that?

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So, we left the nightclub, and went towards his flat.

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When we got there, you know, he opened the door,

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and it was dark inside, I was like, this is not an after-party.

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He grabbed me by the arms

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and forced me into what, I suppose, was the bedroom.

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There was a dirty, kind of, mattress on the floor,

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and he pushed me onto it.

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He ripped my clothes off, and then raped me, twice.

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I tried SO hard to get away. I just felt powerless.

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He held me down, he punched me, he beat me.

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I just screamed. I kicked him, but I wasn't strong enough.

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He was a lot stronger than I was.

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He left the room, told me if I leave, he'll kill me.

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I had no idea what to do, I was lying in my own blood

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on a mattress, thinking, "What am I going to do?"

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When I couldn't hear anything,

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I crept through to see where he was,

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and I saw him sleeping on the couch.

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That's an image that will never leave my head.

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I'm not sure why, I just see him sleeping on the couch.

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Sarah ran out of the flat, wearing just a bloody dressing gown,

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looking for someone to help her.

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I ran past a bed and breakfast,

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there were two men standing outside, smoking cigarettes,

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and I walked up to them, hysterical, "Help me, I've been raped."

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-They just looked at me in disgust.

-They didn't help you?

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No, they went back inside.

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Alone and exhausted, Sarah collapsed in the street.

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Two CID officers found her and brought her into a police station.

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All over my body, there were bruises, from his hands grabbing me.

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I had these little bruises all over me.

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I suffered from quite severe vaginal tearing, black eye, scratches, cuts.

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I just remember sitting in the shower,

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just sitting there crying, watching all this blood drip off me.

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The dirt, it just sunk in, what had happened.

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I just wanted to wash.

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Then I realised that he was inside of me.

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Even to this day, I will never be clean of that. Never.

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Sarah's attacker was arrested that day. He denied raping her.

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I don't know. I just think maybe I can move on with my life more

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if he could just admit that he did this.

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But he put me through all of that

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and I can never forgive someone who did that. I can never.

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Sarah's attacker was found guilty of her rape,

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and sentenced to eight years in prison.

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The fact that her rapist was tried and convicted,

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sadly, makes her case unusual.

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When police investigate a crime,

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they bring their evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service,

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who ultimately decide if the case should go to court.

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But the CPS drops more than half of the rape cases brought to them

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by the police.

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Just one in four rape cases originally reported

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actually ends up in court.

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So if you've been raped

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and your case goes to trial, you're one of the very few lucky ones...

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..although, it probably won't feel like it.

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Where would a victim stand?

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The victim would have to come all the way...

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'Hannah Camplin is a legal expert for Rights Of Women.

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'They support victims going through a trial.'

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So, the victim is actually a witness?

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Yes, the victim is the prime witness for the prosecution case,

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so the first witness that they would call.

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OK. Do they... They don't get a lawyer?

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No, the victim has the Crown Prosecution Service

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lawyer to represent them,

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but they don't have a lawyer of their own,

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-if you like.

-I cannot imagine, like, you're standing here,

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and you just know that your...

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someone who attacked you is standing there.

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That must feel horrible. Do people find it really tough?

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I think everyone who's given evidence would say

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that they find it... It's not a pleasant experience, at all.

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I think that some people

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would experience an element of satisfaction in actually

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-telling people what happened.

-OK.

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But I think it's really, really important to appreciate

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that this can be a difficult process.

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And the best thing to do is to get as much support and advice

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as you can do, before you actually decide to go through this process.

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A victim would be in here, reliving through everything again,

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and people firing questions at you, and questioning what happened,

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and they are doubting what you're saying.

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It must be really difficult.

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'Victims now have the option to testify behind a screen

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'or via video link.'

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Some women choose to face their attacker

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'in court, like Sarah,

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'although she wasn't prepared for the ordeal she then experienced.'

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I was terrified of him. He was a monster, in my mind.

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I just needed to face that fear.

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I really needed to see him,

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and realise that he wasn't this terrifying person. He was pathetic.

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At the end of that, I felt good.

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I felt... I felt good.

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I felt like I had... accomplished something,

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but things changed as soon as the defence stood up.

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You can't prepare yourself for someone accusing you of things

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that you haven't done, when you're not even on trial,

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and no-one stops them.

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No-one objected. No-one said, "This is wrong."

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He accused me of liking it. General things like that.

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And it was horrific. It was horrific.

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I thought I was the victim, but at that point, I felt like a criminal.

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I asked a senior prosecutor with the Crown Prosecution Service

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if more could be done to protect victims in court.

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We try and make sure that we do protect them.

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We should also be looking at making sure that the counsel that prosecutes

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the case, and our own advocates, are properly instructed, that they

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are rape specialists, that they do jump up and object

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if the cross-examination is inappropriate.

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The defence has their barrister, someone fighting their corner.

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The victim is a witness. Do you think that actually works properly?

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I think it's the best system that we have got at the moment.

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I think the protections that we've put in help tremendously.

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I still think there are things that we can look at improving,

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but the way in which our system is, for any case,

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not just for rape cases, but for any case,

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it's an adversarial system, where the prosecution presents their case

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and the defence challenge it.

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For some victims, like Sarah,

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the experience of court feels almost like being attacked all over again.

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But despite her anger at how she was treated,

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testifying meant that, ultimately, she saw her attacker convicted.

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Me and my sister stayed in the witness room,

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because neither of us could deal with it, if it was bad news.

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Then, about 15 minutes later, my friend and my mum walked through

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and they had big smiles on their faces, and said,

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"Guilty." And I was actually jumping.

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If I could still remember how to do cartwheels, I would have done them.

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They believed me, and that was what was important -

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that people knew that I wasn't lying about this. This happened to me.

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'I think Sarah was incredibly brave to stand up in court

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'and testify against her rapist.

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'But how can our justice system make it easier for more women

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'to testify in court

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'and make sure that more rapists are convicted?'

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I think part of the problem is our attitude to sex.

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# It must be ass Cos it ain't your face

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# I need a tip drill I need a tip trill

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# I said it must be ass Cos it ain't your face... #

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We are bombarded with explicit sexual imagery every day...

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..in ads, magazines, TV, phones, the web.

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A lot of it portrays women as up for sex all the time,

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and men as dominant and in control.

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And pornography is more accessible to young people than ever before.

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One in four boys accesses porn at least once a week.

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Kat Banyard, a feminist writer, thinks it's a serious problem.

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We have boys and girls now

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that are, for the first time in human history, are being raised

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in, pretty much, a pornified culture. And if we look at these images,

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if we look at these films, and so forth,

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we see that sex is portrayed as being about power.

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It's about, a man will take it from a woman,

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he will do it to her, he will give it to her.

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It's not about exchange and communication

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and mutual respect.

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We still have some pretty old-school ideas,

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that if women behave in a certain way, then they're sluts.

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If some men get the wrong idea, then what do they expect?

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A major study showed that we have deep-seated stereotypes

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about rape in our society.

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34% of people thought that a woman was fully, or partially, responsible

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for being raped if she was flirting.

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30% thought a woman was responsible if she was drunk.

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26% thought a woman was responsible

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if she was wearing sexy or revealing clothing.

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It all basically adds up to the idea that, if you get raped,

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it's somehow your fault.

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Do you know what really gets me?

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It's that people can still think this way.

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We all go out with our mates, you get dolled up.

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But I just don't understand how people can still think

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you are, somehow, asking for it,

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as though rape just is out there, waiting for you.

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That seems like putting blame on the victim,

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instead of on the perpetrator - the rapist.

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To me, that's just not right.

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Most rapes are perpetrated by a small minority of men,

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yet I almost never hear

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anyone asking men what they think about rape.

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So I'm meeting up with a group of young men from a community project

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in London who are willing to talk to me about it.

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'I want to know what they think of the idea

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'that women could bring rape upon themselves.'

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I don't think anyone could ask for that,

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but they could put themselves in a situation

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where it's likely to happen.

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You know, say a girl is dressed in a certain way. You're in a club,

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a girl is coming towards you and, you know,

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you are acting friendly and you're buying drinks

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and everything seems OK,

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and then it gets to a point where a guy could be

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taking that a certain way, thinking, "All systems go."

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-So she's leading someone on?

-Leading someone on, basically.

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Because someone is leading someone on,

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-do you think that that could end in rape?

-It could end,

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but whether it warrants to end in rape,

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I don't think it should.

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But some girls do seem like they want to have sex,

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because of the way they dress and act around boys.

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But they dress like that because they are going out nightclubbing.

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Just because someone is wearing a short skirt

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doesn't mean they want action.

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It is the whole thing of how you perceive that person,

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cos sometimes a woman just wants to look good.

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-Some men don't have an understanding of the situation.

-At all.

-At all.

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Because women will never tell you, "I like you. Let's go upstairs!"

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-LAUGHTER

-It don't work like that.

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We're not lucky beans, like that. You know what I'm saying?

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Where J-Lo will come on to us, "No talk, let's go!"

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We have to work.

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We have to read the signs, we have to work it out.

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Obviously, sometimes, guys, I think they jump the gun at times.

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The thing is, it's that kind of attitude and mentality

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which leads to things happening,

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where a girl's put in a situation which has led to rape.

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What can we do about those attitudes?

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How can we stop that from happening?

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You can educate people into making the right decisions,

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which is all about teaching young girls and guys

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about the signs girls MAY give off,

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which may not necessarily mean, "I want this."

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Sometimes, as people,

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we need to understand the damage of the things we cause,

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because by this action, you're damaging a life.

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Maybe we need to learn that, as people, to understand

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that we can't do this to people, cos it's more than just one night.

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It is for the rest of their life.

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The guys think there are some grey areas around boundaries

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and signals that need to be worked out.

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But does that mean there is genuine confusion among young people

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about what is and is not OK?

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-Hello.

-Hi.

-Hiya.

-Pips. Nice to meet you.

-Come through.

-Thank you.

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'I'm meeting Mercy, a young person's adviser

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'at The Havens sexual assault referral centre in East London.

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'She helps hundreds of young people who've been raped

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'or sexually assaulted every year.'

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A lot of young people don't think that oral sex is sex.

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A lot of girls look at me as if to say,

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"Wow, I didn't know that was actually an offence.

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-"I didn't even know oral sex was sex."

-Hmm.

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A lot of young people don't think that is a crime or sexual assault.

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There are people out there that are doing this

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and don't even realise that they are committing a crime.

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And there are victims out there that don't even know they are a victim.

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When discussing consent, who is responsible, the boy or the girl?

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I think the boy needs to be asking the girl, "Do you want to have sex?"

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But, again, if she's under the influence of alcohol or drugs,

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her yes can mean no, and her no can mean yes.

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You are not in a position to make that choice for her

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and go ahead and have full sex with her. You're not in that position.

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Don't have sex with somebody intoxicated with alcohol or under the influence of drugs.

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The Havens carried out research about young people

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and attitudes towards consent, called Where's Your Line?

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and made a film to go with their findings.

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Their results were worrying.

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One in ten young men would expect

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someone to have sex with them after kissing.

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Almost one in ten young women have said no to sex, but been ignored.

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More than half of the young adults surveyed say

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they would not be put off sex if their partner was crying.

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It's unbelievable.

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The survey results make me feel like we've got a serious problem,

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and the fact that young people think it's normal

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to...possibly have sex with someone when they are asleep,

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that they think it is normal for a girl to cry during sex.

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They're really shocking statistics. They're really shocking attitudes,

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and I think that we need to do everything that we possibly can

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in order to fight those attitudes.

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So what can be done to help change attitudes to consent

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and understand what is and is not OK when it comes to sex?

0:21:380:21:42

One of the biggest stereotypes

0:22:020:22:04

about rape is that a rapist will be some stranger in a dark alley.

0:22:040:22:08

But, in fact, most women know their attackers.

0:22:080:22:12

Things can get even more difficult

0:22:170:22:20

when an attacker is not just someone you know,

0:22:200:22:22

but someone you're in a relationship with.

0:22:220:22:24

Today I'm meeting Laura. Several years ago,

0:22:290:22:33

her then-boyfriend agreed to take their relationship slowly,

0:22:330:22:36

and wait until she was ready for them to sleep together.

0:22:360:22:39

One particular night, he decided that he wanted what he wanted,

0:22:430:22:47

and there was no... I didn't really have any say in it.

0:22:470:22:51

Laura is not her real name.

0:22:510:22:52

She's asked us to protect her identity,

0:22:520:22:54

because she's never talked publicly about what happened to her.

0:22:540:22:58

I was watching a film or something, cos I was at his place.

0:23:020:23:06

And I had fallen asleep. I remember waking up, with him

0:23:070:23:13

on top of me.

0:23:130:23:14

And...he raped me. I couldn't believe he had done that.

0:23:140:23:20

I can't believe that it was someone that you knew,

0:23:200:23:25

it's your partner. It's absolutely shocking.

0:23:250:23:29

You can't believe it's happening.

0:23:330:23:35

It feels like it's happening to someone else.

0:23:350:23:39

I remember, after it happened, I left, I went home,

0:23:390:23:42

I'm thinking, "That didn't happen. That didn't happen."

0:23:420:23:46

In the morning, he called me.

0:23:460:23:49

-He called you?

-He called me.

0:23:490:23:52

PHONE RINGS

0:23:520:23:54

He said, "Are you OK?"

0:23:570:23:59

I said, "No, I'm not. Don't call me."

0:23:590:24:02

He was like, "I'm so sorry." I said, "Just leave me alone."

0:24:020:24:06

I kind of put it away. I put it in a box.

0:24:110:24:15

But it's not something you can bury, because it changes who you are.

0:24:150:24:19

It changes you as a person.

0:24:190:24:22

Laura chose not to report the rape

0:24:220:24:25

and tried to cope with the trauma alone.

0:24:250:24:28

-Did you tell any family members?

-No. No, I don't...

0:24:300:24:34

This is one of the reasons why I wanted to do this today.

0:24:360:24:41

People's views on things,

0:24:410:24:43

that's what stopped me from telling my family

0:24:430:24:46

and going to the police.

0:24:460:24:49

People have such defined views on what happens to someone

0:24:490:24:52

that is sexually assaulted.

0:24:520:24:53

I was staying at his house, and people will have views,

0:24:530:24:57

"If you was there, what did you expect?"

0:24:570:25:00

If it's a stranger, then it's more acceptable.

0:25:000:25:03

And just having that, there is no way I could go.

0:25:030:25:07

No way. No way.

0:25:070:25:09

Cases like Laura's are not rare.

0:25:100:25:13

According to the Rape Crisis Organisation,

0:25:130:25:15

more than one in five rapes are perpetrated

0:25:150:25:18

by a victim's boyfriend or husband.

0:25:180:25:20

A year after her attack, Laura finally got counselling.

0:25:210:25:25

It's not an instant thing,

0:25:270:25:28

it's not something that happens overnight, there's no magic wand.

0:25:280:25:31

But it's a lifesaver.

0:25:310:25:34

I felt really sad for her to have nowhere to go

0:25:380:25:41

because she didn't think people would believe her.

0:25:410:25:43

I can't imagine what that must have been like for her.

0:25:430:25:46

Laura's choice to not report the crime is common.

0:25:470:25:51

In fact, it is estimated that up to 95% of rapes

0:25:510:25:54

in the UK are unreported.

0:25:540:25:56

That could be hundreds of thousands of victims

0:25:570:26:00

who are too ashamed or afraid to even talk about it,

0:26:000:26:04

let alone report it to the police.

0:26:040:26:07

So why are so many victims worried about the police?

0:26:080:26:13

It seems like there has been far too many high-profile reports

0:26:140:26:18

which have criticised police behaviour, and I'm reading here

0:26:180:26:21

that the police haven't been taking victims seriously,

0:26:210:26:25

that rape hasn't been high enough as a priority,

0:26:250:26:28

rape hasn't even been a priority for the police force,

0:26:280:26:30

and that there's even a culture

0:26:300:26:32

of blaming the victim within the police force,

0:26:320:26:35

which is totally unacceptable.

0:26:350:26:37

There have been big efforts

0:26:390:26:41

to improve services in the last ten years,

0:26:410:26:43

including specially-trained officers on every force,

0:26:430:26:46

and sexual-assault referral centres across England and Wales.

0:26:460:26:50

Yet still today,

0:26:500:26:52

around half of the incidents of rape reported to police

0:26:520:26:54

don't progress any further.

0:26:540:26:57

Why do you think so many woman don't report rape?

0:26:570:27:02

Today, around half of the incidents of rape that are reported

0:27:200:27:24

to the police don't progress any further.

0:27:240:27:27

There have big efforts to improve services in the last ten years,

0:27:270:27:30

including specially-trained officers on every force

0:27:300:27:33

and sexual assault referral centres across England and Wales.

0:27:330:27:37

One police force in England that has changed how it investigates rape

0:27:430:27:46

is Avon and Somerset.

0:27:460:27:48

-Good afternoon.

-Hi, Pips.

-DS Roger Doxsey.

-Lovely to meet you.

0:27:530:27:57

-Come on through.

-Thanks so much for having us.

-No problem.

0:27:570:28:01

Operation Blue Stone is a dedicated unit set up in 2009.

0:28:070:28:11

It's improved conviction rates

0:28:110:28:13

and also the numbers of victims seeing cases through to court.

0:28:130:28:16

All the officers here volunteered for the unit.

0:28:170:28:20

They deal with a rape case from reporting to trial,

0:28:200:28:24

which means the victim gets to deal with the same people all the way through the process.

0:28:240:28:29

Victims often fear that people won't believe them.

0:28:290:28:32

What would you say to someone who would like to come forward?

0:28:320:28:36

We have to investigate all lines of inquiry.

0:28:360:28:38

But anyone coming in and walking through the door

0:28:380:28:40

and speaking to one of my officers will be believed.

0:28:400:28:43

That's just a given.

0:28:430:28:45

Many people have a perception that there are flaws

0:28:450:28:49

in the system concerning rape cases. Do you feel that in any way?

0:28:490:28:55

I have a very personal view that sometimes the system feels

0:28:550:28:59

more biased towards the perpetrators.

0:28:590:29:02

The pressure often seems all on the victim.

0:29:020:29:05

Reporting a rape will usually involve

0:29:090:29:11

giving detailed statements about the attack,

0:29:110:29:14

answering questions and going through

0:29:140:29:16

a forensic medical examination to build up evidence.

0:29:160:29:20

It's not an easy process for any victim of a traumatic event.

0:29:200:29:24

And, unfortunately, going through that process is no guarantee that

0:29:260:29:30

your case will even get to court.

0:29:300:29:33

'Today, I'm meeting a young woman I'm going to call Natalie.

0:29:350:29:39

'We have to protect her identity for legal reasons.

0:29:390:29:42

'Natalie was subjected to an attack

0:29:430:29:45

'that is becoming more common - a gang rape.'

0:29:450:29:49

Police say sex attacks involving multiple perpetrators

0:29:490:29:53

have increased by around 20% in recent years in London alone.

0:29:530:29:57

In many cases, victims are targeted by guys they know

0:29:590:30:02

and THINK are their friends.

0:30:020:30:03

These crimes are difficult to investigate

0:30:030:30:06

because nobody wants to turn in their own crew.

0:30:060:30:09

Five years ago, when Natalie was just 16,

0:30:110:30:14

some guys from her area started hanging around with her.

0:30:140:30:17

At first they treated her really well.

0:30:170:30:19

I felt very safe around them.

0:30:190:30:21

They would always be there to protect me when I went out to parties

0:30:210:30:24

They would look after me.

0:30:240:30:26

So, yeah, to me it felt like a very good bunch of friends.

0:30:260:30:30

Natalie started dating one of them

0:30:320:30:34

and thought it was a group she could trust.

0:30:340:30:37

All except for one, the leader of the group.

0:30:380:30:41

Whatever he said would go, in their eyes.

0:30:430:30:45

Whatever he said to do, they would do it.

0:30:450:30:48

From the first time I met him, I didn't like him,

0:30:480:30:51

I didn't want to be around him.

0:30:510:30:52

One night, Natalie was invited over to her boyfriend's house to listen to music

0:30:540:30:59

and found the whole group there.

0:30:590:31:02

Including the guy she was scared of.

0:31:020:31:05

Even though I was the only girl and there were five guys there,

0:31:080:31:11

I thought these were my friends

0:31:110:31:13

and I didn't think anything would happen at all.

0:31:130:31:15

But soon the lead guy started talking about being horny

0:31:170:31:21

and making sexual comments towards her.

0:31:210:31:24

I thought, OK, I feel a bit uncomfortable now,

0:31:240:31:27

I'm the only female in the room.

0:31:270:31:29

And then he got out a box of condoms

0:31:290:31:32

and then he started throwing them at me.

0:31:320:31:35

Next minute, he started lighting matches and then throwing them at me.

0:31:390:31:44

-Lit matches?

-Yes, lit matches.

0:31:440:31:46

No-one was sticking up for me or saying, "What are you doing?"

0:31:480:31:51

Everyone was sitting there, laughing.

0:31:510:31:53

The lead guy called a couple of the other boys out of the living room.

0:31:550:31:59

Then Natalie was called into a bedroom.

0:31:590:32:01

The guy I thought was scary was telling me

0:32:060:32:08

that I'm supposed to give oral sex.

0:32:080:32:11

And I was like, "What are you talking about? I don't want to do that."

0:32:110:32:15

And he said to me that if I don't it, he was going to stab me.

0:32:150:32:19

So this was when I was thinking, "Oh, my God, what do I do?"

0:32:190:32:22

My friend I was speaking to said he couldn't help me,

0:32:220:32:25

just do what he says or he will stab you.

0:32:250:32:28

Natalie's friend agreed to lie and tell the others she'd given him oral sex.

0:32:300:32:34

But then the lead guy came back into the bedroom.

0:32:340:32:38

He came and sat next to me on the bed.

0:32:410:32:43

I was sitting in the dark on the bed and then...

0:32:430:32:46

he had a knife to my throat and told me if I didn't have sex with him,

0:32:460:32:51

he was going to rape me.

0:32:510:32:53

And...I kind of thought, what am I supposed to do?

0:32:530:32:58

I don't want to say yes and have sex with a stranger I don't even like.

0:32:580:33:03

And I didn't want to say no and then get attacked.

0:33:030:33:07

But I had no choice, I had a knife to my throat.

0:33:070:33:10

So I had sex and was raped by him.

0:33:100:33:12

And then after he had raped me,

0:33:130:33:15

he told the guy I was dating to come in and rape me as well.

0:33:150:33:19

So then he raped me

0:33:190:33:21

and then after that his little brother came in as well.

0:33:210:33:24

It was like they were taking turns with me, basically, one after another.

0:33:240:33:28

I was sore, I just wanted to leave.

0:33:280:33:30

Even after I got raped by his little brother,

0:33:300:33:33

the main perpetrator came in again and basically had round two with me.

0:33:330:33:37

The boys took turns raping Natalie for hours.

0:33:400:33:43

She was only able to get away the next morning

0:33:430:33:47

when her boyfriend's parents came in.

0:33:470:33:50

Later that day, Natalie broke down and told her mum what had happened.

0:33:520:33:56

They went to the police to report the rapes.

0:33:560:33:59

Natalie then endured months of anxious waiting

0:33:590:34:02

to face her attackers in court.

0:34:020:34:05

I went to the court, they told me where I was going to sit,

0:34:050:34:07

where the perpetrator was going to sit

0:34:070:34:10

and what was going to go on that day.

0:34:100:34:12

But she never got the chance.

0:34:120:34:14

I think the next day, I got a phone call

0:34:140:34:16

saying that I'm not needed in court any more and that the case had been dropped.

0:34:160:34:21

Why did it get stopped?

0:34:210:34:22

It got dropped because they said there was a lack of evidence

0:34:220:34:25

and there wasn't a high enough percentage of chance

0:34:250:34:29

that I would win the case.

0:34:290:34:31

Natalie had to get in touch with the Crown Prosecution Service

0:34:330:34:36

to arrange a meeting to discuss the case.

0:34:360:34:39

It was horrible. They were so cold about it.

0:34:400:34:43

I was angry at this point as well

0:34:430:34:45

because I was trying to tell them how I felt.

0:34:450:34:48

Even if I didn't win the case, at least I would have had

0:34:480:34:51

a step to talk out about what happened and put my point across.

0:34:510:34:55

They were saying they can't see any point in me going

0:34:550:34:58

and putting me through the trauma to then be let down and know

0:34:580:35:01

I'm going to lose the case anyway.

0:35:010:35:03

To me, I've had no closure or justice on the case.

0:35:030:35:06

It felt like I'd been through all that trauma,

0:35:060:35:09

all them statements, all the filming and forensics for no reason.

0:35:090:35:14

Natalie is moving forward with her life, but can't escape

0:35:160:35:20

reminders that her attackers got away with what they did.

0:35:200:35:23

I've seen him quite a few times and he's living life.

0:35:230:35:26

I don't even know if he remembers me, to tell the truth,

0:35:260:35:29

and that's what hurts the most, because I will always remember him.

0:35:290:35:32

But I don't know if he'll even remember me.

0:35:320:35:35

I would like to find out what really goes on in the CPS

0:35:390:35:42

because it sounds like they're not really doing their job.

0:35:420:35:47

Or, you know, especially in Natalie's case,

0:35:470:35:50

that they've done the job badly.

0:35:500:35:52

I want some answers about what's going wrong.

0:35:540:35:58

A senior prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service has agreed to meet me.

0:35:580:36:02

Alison, why is it that more cases don't get to court?

0:36:020:36:06

There are a number of reasons.

0:36:060:36:08

We look at all the evidence and decide

0:36:080:36:10

is a conviction is more likely than not?

0:36:100:36:12

Is there a realistic prospect of conviction?

0:36:120:36:15

Very often, people think it's because we don't believe them.

0:36:150:36:19

But it's not. It's we can't demonstrate to the court

0:36:190:36:22

and the jury that there is sufficient evidence there.

0:36:220:36:26

Quite often we find victims decide they don't want to go through the process themselves.

0:36:260:36:31

OK, I met a girl who suffered a horrendous ordeal,

0:36:310:36:34

multi-perpetrator attack.

0:36:340:36:36

She reported to the police,

0:36:360:36:38

went through months of preparation for the trial

0:36:380:36:41

and then the day before she was meant to go into court,

0:36:410:36:44

her case was dropped by the CPS due to lack of evidence.

0:36:440:36:47

Why would something like this happen?

0:36:470:36:49

I obviously can't comment on that case,

0:36:490:36:51

because I don't know the particular case.

0:36:510:36:53

But certainly in any case where we're not going ahead,

0:36:530:36:56

we ought to be explaining to the victim

0:36:560:36:59

why we are not going ahead so that she understands.

0:36:590:37:02

The CPS drops more than half the rape cases brought to them by the police.

0:37:040:37:10

Just one in four rape cases originally reported actually ends up in court.

0:37:100:37:15

Natalie is angry at the CPS

0:37:150:37:17

but she still feels reporting her attack was the right thing to do.

0:37:170:37:20

Even though it was traumatising reporting it and going

0:37:200:37:23

through that system, at least I was able to come out and speak about it.

0:37:230:37:27

Because in the long run it's not good to block things up.

0:37:270:37:30

I would encourage other people because there is the chance

0:37:300:37:32

theirs could go further and they could get some justice from it.

0:37:320:37:36

Yes, it's always worth taking that chance.

0:37:360:37:38

I really admire Natalie's courage.

0:37:380:37:41

I just hope that more women feel they can go to the police

0:37:410:37:44

and report being raped, like she did.

0:37:440:37:47

How can the police encourage more women to report rape?

0:37:470:37:50

Ultimately, once a rape case comes to court,

0:38:070:38:10

the decision comes down to the ordinary people on a jury,

0:38:100:38:13

and directly reflects how our society thinks about rape.

0:38:130:38:17

Today, I'm meeting Jane,

0:38:240:38:25

a young woman raped by a man she thought she knew well.

0:38:250:38:29

She was staying over at a friend's.

0:38:290:38:32

In the middle of the night, she woke up to find her friend's boyfriend in bed with her.

0:38:320:38:37

I had fallen asleep and woke up and he was behind me, raping me.

0:38:420:38:48

I realised that it had to be him, he was the only male in the house.

0:38:510:38:55

I didn't fight and I didn't retaliate in any way

0:38:550:38:59

because I was so shocked.

0:38:590:39:02

I'd known this man for several years, I trusted him.

0:39:020:39:06

Um...I just...I just froze.

0:39:060:39:11

When he realised Jane was awake, he left the room.

0:39:140:39:17

Jane left and reported the attack to the police almost immediately.

0:39:200:39:24

But she then had to wait 16 months for the trial.

0:39:260:39:29

It was the worst time of my life.

0:39:300:39:33

I would have always said that I was quite a strong person.

0:39:330:39:36

I was very outgoing, sociable, happy person, and I lost that.

0:39:360:39:40

I lost all of that.

0:39:400:39:43

I just was somebody that I didn't even recognise any more.

0:39:430:39:46

The prosecution team didn't meet with Jane until just a week or so before the trial.

0:39:480:39:53

It was all very rushed,

0:39:530:39:55

they always stressed to expect disappointment

0:39:550:39:59

because they very often see it in rape cases where violence was not part of the act.

0:39:590:40:04

But they also on the other hand were telling me

0:40:040:40:07

this is the strongest case, your evidence points towards winning it.

0:40:070:40:12

Jane's attacker denied raping her.

0:40:170:40:20

It wasn't until he was actually on the stand that we found out

0:40:220:40:26

what his defence was. And that was basically that he couldn't remember,

0:40:260:40:31

he had no recollection.

0:40:310:40:32

-He was saying he couldn't remember?

-Yes.

0:40:320:40:34

So myself and my family were sitting in court looking at each other going, "It doesn't add up."

0:40:340:40:40

You know, people have to see through this.

0:40:400:40:43

How can a jury sit and listen to "I don't remember"?

0:40:430:40:46

And so what if you don't remember? It was never consensual,

0:40:460:40:50

there was never consent there.

0:40:500:40:53

The accused was then asked if he could explain

0:40:530:40:55

the forensic evidence taken from Jane.

0:40:550:40:58

He said he accepted that something must have happened, but he has

0:40:590:41:03

no recollection of what, and that he can assume that it was consensual sex.

0:41:030:41:09

Jane was surprised to see how some members of the jury acted.

0:41:100:41:15

To be honest, a lot of them looked like they didn't want to be there

0:41:160:41:19

and they were bored.

0:41:190:41:21

When the jury were sent out to discuss their verdict

0:41:210:41:25

and come back with the result,

0:41:250:41:27

I think a lot of the lawyers expected them to come back quite quickly.

0:41:270:41:32

His own defence barrister approached my prosecution barrister

0:41:320:41:37

and his words were, "Do these people not know how to spell 'guilty' ?"

0:41:370:41:41

Because he believed that he was not walking free.

0:41:410:41:45

On the second day, without a unanimous verdict,

0:41:470:41:50

the judge asked the jury to reach a majority decision instead.

0:41:500:41:55

-And what was the majority decision?

-Not guilty.

0:41:550:41:58

-I can't believe it.

-Some people on the jury said he was not guilty.

0:42:000:42:05

Numb doesn't even describe it. I can't even put into words how I felt

0:42:050:42:08

when they read that verdict out.

0:42:080:42:10

There was one particular girl in the jury who instantly burst into tears

0:42:100:42:15

and actually turned to me and my family and mouthed the word "sorry".

0:42:150:42:19

Do you have any inclination as to why the jury said not guilty?

0:42:200:42:25

The judge tells them that they have to be 100% certain of the verdict.

0:42:250:42:31

Which in my eyes is just... It's bizarre, it's not right.

0:42:310:42:36

I mean, it's human nature to have doubt and have your own opinions.

0:42:360:42:40

Despite the verdict, Jane is still glad she reported the attack.

0:42:400:42:45

I felt I had done the right thing. And I didn't let him away with it.

0:42:450:42:49

I could have just gone home that night and said nothing.

0:42:490:42:53

I didn't let him ruin me. I don't know how, but, you know, I'm here.

0:42:530:42:59

I survived it, you know.

0:42:590:43:00

The senior prosecutor from the Crown Prosecution Service I met

0:43:040:43:07

is concerned about the decisions that some juries are reaching in rape trials.

0:43:070:43:12

What we are finding is that the largest single reason

0:43:140:43:17

for cases not succeeding is jury acquittals.

0:43:170:43:20

We know that the majority of cases we are prosecuting now,

0:43:200:43:24

it's young girls, there are drink or drugs involved.

0:43:240:43:27

They know the offender,

0:43:270:43:29

they've either been in a relationship with him or know him,

0:43:290:43:32

so it makes you wonder if that sort of case has an impact on the jury

0:43:320:43:36

and the jury perhaps have misconceptions around some

0:43:360:43:40

of the stereotypes they don't realise they're bringing into the jury room.

0:43:400:43:45

So even if a victim of rape gets past all the hurdles in our justice system

0:43:490:43:54

to have their day in court,

0:43:540:43:55

they still come up against the prejudices we hold about rape in society.

0:43:550:44:00

We seem to focus more on how the victim might have been

0:44:020:44:06

responsible instead of blaming rapists.

0:44:060:44:09

Why is it that so many people are raped,

0:44:130:44:15

but so many perpetrators are not brought to justice?

0:44:150:44:19

Because on the whole, we don't believe women.

0:44:190:44:23

We don't believe this is happening.

0:44:230:44:26

But the reality is that women are being raped on a staggering scale.

0:44:260:44:31

But our heads are stuck in the sand

0:44:310:44:34

and the criminal justice system has got its fingers in its ears,

0:44:340:44:37

it's not listening to women, it's not dealing with the reality.

0:44:370:44:41

It's seen as this natural hazard that women have to be careful of.

0:44:410:44:45

For example, when they are coming home late at night,

0:44:450:44:47

when they've been to the pub,

0:44:470:44:49

they just need to take the necessary precautions

0:44:490:44:52

and if they are responsible, it will be OK.

0:44:520:44:55

As if it's like the weather.

0:44:550:44:57

But we're talking about violent acts done for a purpose,

0:44:570:45:02

you know, people decide to rape,

0:45:020:45:05

they make a choice and they have an intent.

0:45:050:45:08

Rape is not an inevitable force of nature.

0:45:120:45:15

We can improve our systems for dealing with it,

0:45:150:45:17

but how do we stop it happening in the first place?

0:45:170:45:20

Being a victim of rape changes a life for ever,

0:45:400:45:44

but it doesn't have to mean it's ruined.

0:45:440:45:46

Today I'm meeting a young survivor who demonstrates that it's possible

0:45:460:45:50

to move on and even become stronger.

0:45:500:45:53

I've come to Scotland to visit a charity for young survivors of sexual assault.

0:45:570:46:03

Hi, Nicole. Hiya, I'm Pip.

0:46:050:46:08

'Nicole Campbell set up SAVI with her mum three years ago.'

0:46:080:46:12

I decided to launch SAVI because when I was 14

0:46:140:46:16

I was actually raped by my friend's dad

0:46:160:46:19

and we found no help at all through the court process,

0:46:190:46:23

especially whilst I was most vulnerable.

0:46:230:46:26

And I really did need some support.

0:46:260:46:28

There was nothing there for me or my family.

0:46:280:46:30

Nicole was raped when she was staying over at her friend's house.

0:46:330:46:36

His dad gave her alcohol and insisted that she stayed the night.

0:46:370:46:41

Basically, just went to sleep and the next thing I know,

0:46:440:46:48

it was like some pressure on me and I felt a bit sore and uncomfortable

0:46:480:46:53

and I just kind of opened my eyes and his dad was, like, there.

0:46:530:46:57

He was like doing it, raping me whilst I was sleeping.

0:46:570:47:00

I was still a virgin at the time as well,

0:47:000:47:03

so that's pretty much how I lost that.

0:47:030:47:06

Nicole was afraid that no-one would believe her,

0:47:070:47:10

but her friends convinced her to tell her parents.

0:47:100:47:13

With their support, she reported the rape to the police.

0:47:130:47:17

But the attack had a terrible effect on her.

0:47:170:47:20

I was using negative coping strategies to deal with things

0:47:200:47:24

because I didn't know the proper way to deal with things.

0:47:240:47:26

I started getting bullied in school as well

0:47:260:47:29

because people said I was lying and that I wanted to sleep with him.

0:47:290:47:32

And that I was a slut and all sorts of things were coming with it.

0:47:320:47:36

That's horrible.

0:47:360:47:37

Then I started cutting myself, I carved "dirty" into the top of my leg

0:47:370:47:41

because that's how I felt. I'd actually done that into my leg.

0:47:410:47:44

Nicole testified against her attacker in court.

0:47:470:47:50

And he was convicted for her rape.

0:47:530:47:55

I want to make sure he couldn't do it anyone else.

0:47:550:47:59

That's why I wanted him put behind bars.

0:47:590:48:01

But really, the worst trauma probably starts after

0:48:010:48:05

because you have no way of dealing with things.

0:48:050:48:08

The only thing I could turn to to block out my feelings were

0:48:080:48:12

alcohol and stuff like that, just anything that was going to

0:48:120:48:15

take me away from feeling the way I did at that time.

0:48:150:48:18

I just really hated myself and didn't care about myself at all.

0:48:180:48:22

It wouldn't have made a difference to me if I was alive or not at that time.

0:48:220:48:26

So what was the turning point for you?

0:48:260:48:30

Basically, I woke up and realised I was letting him win.

0:48:300:48:35

I wasn't prepared to do that.

0:48:350:48:37

I didn't go through everything I went through to make sure

0:48:370:48:40

he got put behind bars, I didn't go through all of that...

0:48:400:48:44

for nothing.

0:48:440:48:45

Nicole sought help to get her own head straight

0:48:490:48:52

and then trained as a counsellor.

0:48:520:48:54

OK, I'll see you at four o'clock on Thursday.

0:48:540:48:57

'The feeling that I got after I'd helped one client, I mean,'

0:48:570:49:00

I was buzzing, I was so hyper after, seeing them going away happy.

0:49:000:49:04

It's a great feeling, so even that continued to help me

0:49:040:49:08

and continued to make me stronger and understand people a lot better.

0:49:080:49:13

Do you have any thoughts on why you think perpetrators may do what they do?

0:49:130:49:19

I think it's control. To then play out their sick fantasies,

0:49:190:49:23

whatever they have in their mind, their sick thoughts.

0:49:230:49:26

It's control and it makes them feel powerful,

0:49:260:49:28

being able to take what they take from this person.

0:49:280:49:31

I've kept my power, I've taken it back.

0:49:310:49:33

And I just want every other victim out there to know that they can do exactly the same.

0:49:330:49:38

No-one has the right to take that away from you, that's yours,

0:49:380:49:41

that's your power, your pride, that's everything you work on, your confidence.

0:49:410:49:45

Don't ever let anyone take that away from you, no matter what happens.

0:49:450:49:49

Don't ever, for one second, think they've won, because they've not.

0:49:490:49:53

Meeting Nicole really affected me.

0:49:580:50:00

I think taking one of the worst things that could happen to you

0:50:000:50:03

and finding a way to make it into something positive takes real courage.

0:50:030:50:08

It gave me a sense of hope for other survivors.

0:50:080:50:10

What can we do to improve support for victims of rape?

0:50:100:50:14

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0:50:230:50:26

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