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Rape
survivors demand protection and justice, not ‘summary justice’! By
English Collective of Prostitutes
and Legal Action
for Women The
exclusion zone imposed on a suspected rapist of prostitute women in
Birmingham is a striking example of the summary justice promoted by Tony
Blair.[i]
The police justify it by saying they don’t have enough evidence
to prosecute, even though he has been identified by four women.
This excuse is no longer believable, and is not believed by local
councillors and residents who have expressed concern: 1) that the
women’s evidence is being disregarded because they are sex workers; and
2) that public exposure may push the alleged attacker to move on to
another area where he will be free to strike again.
In
fact, publicly exposing a suspected rapist may end up protecting him from
prosecution and sabotaging any possibility of a criminal conviction,
as his defence could argue that he could not get a fair trial.
As a result, this man and other violent men may be left at liberty
to attack again. We
have seen over and over, how rapists and other violent men have become
serial attackers and even murderers because the police did not bother to
gather crucial evidence when the men were first reported – often by
partners who accused them of domestic violence.
To police reluctance to prioritise rape and domestic violence, we
must add the sexism of the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) which routinely
dismisses cases of violence against women, especially if they consider the
victims “unreliable witnesses” because, for example, they are sex
workers. In
1995 we challenged CPS assumptions by bringing a private prosecution[ii]
against a man who had raped at least two sex workers at knife point.
The man was convicted and sentenced to 14 years (reduced to 11 on
appeal) on the same evidence the CPS had dismissed as “insufficient”.
The case showed that if the evidence is gathered thoroughly and
presented in a non-discriminatory way, juries will decide that sex workers
are as entitled to protection and justice as anyone else. But
despite this precedent, the police and CPS have continued to let their
sexism and other prejudices determine priorities for arrest and
prosecution of those who attack women and children.
As a result, the conviction for rape is down to 5.8% and women and
girls continue to be the victims of rape and murder at the hands of those
who have been let off for similar previous crimes.
Racist
crimes, which are also affected by police and CPS prejudice, also have a
low prosecution and conviction rate, comparable to rape and domestic
violence. Where does that
leave racist sexual assault against women and girls of colour? The
Yorkshire Ripper scandal of the 1970-80s has been followed by Fred and
Rosemary West, Ian Huntley, Anthony Hardy, David Atkinson and others, all
of whom had been reported for violence many times before they were finally
convicted.[iii] Women
Against Rape (WAR) has been raising this for years.
In March 2004 WAR wrote to the Bichard
Inquiry into the Soham murders asking the Inquiry to examine why
Huntley was not previously convicted despite being reported nine times for
rape and sexual assault. WAR’s
request was endorsed by 36 organisations, including ours, and prominent
lawyers. More recently WAR
supported the call by Jackie
Valad,
the mother of one of Hardy’s victims, for a public inquiry to examine
the lack of prosecutions for his previously reported violence.
These requests have been dismissed.
Instead,
justice is being replaced by extra-judicial powers – a parallel criminal
system based not on women’s evidence but on prejudice, hearsay and the
rule of the executive over the courts.
Exclusion zones imposed without a trial – through Anti Social
Behaviour Orders (ASBOs) and anti-terrorism legislation – are now
extended to other crimes. Tony
Blair has said: “We
asked the police what powers they wanted and gave them to them …”
But we must stress that it is
not lack of police powers that stand in the way of justice for women, but
the sexism, racism and other prejudices which determine the low priority
accorded to crimes of violence against women, children, people of colour
and others who are the target of prejudice.
While
attacks on women and children continue to rise, the imprisonment of women
and children accused of breaching ASBOs is escalating – far from
increasing protection, vulnerable women, starting with prostitute women,
and children are increasingly locked up and separated from their families
and peers. Anti-trafficking
powers are another example where rape and other violence against women is
being used to attack women. The
police are raiding massage parlours, claiming to “free” women from
traffickers while locking them up in Yarl’s Wood detention centre and
deporting them. This has provided a cover to target premises where there
is no suggestion of trafficked victims being held.
55 flats in Central London were recently raided and 70 women
questioned without legal representation.
Some were forced to sign cautions (an admission of guilt resulting
in a criminal record). Were
it not for the diversion and disinformation so-called trafficking
provides, the police could not justify targeting women working
independently and more safely in this way.[iv]
We
will not allow the
pain and suffering victims go through to be used to bring in
indiscriminate police powers which hide the police and CPS neglect of
victims’ right to justice. If
we were able to bring a prosecution successfully, why wasn’t the CPS?
Neither the CPS nor anyone in the criminal justice system has
wanted to answer this crucial question.
Successive inquiries into the Soham and the Camden murders have
refused to address why neither Ian Huntley nor Anthony Hardy was convicted
for previous crimes. WAR
has also asked for women’s sexual history not to be raised in court.
This history aimed at discrediting the victim’s character allows
rapist after rapist to walk free. While
claiming they were introducing legislation that would protect the victim,
the government has insisted on keeping legal exemptions which enable the
rapist to trash his victim’s character.
While
it promotes witch-hunts, the much-heralded sex offenders register has not
protected children. Cases of
widespread abuse over years, especially in institutions, continue to
collapse. We
want police time and resources to prioritise crimes of violence against
women and children, we do not want indiscriminate police powers.
We want the CPS to do its job, not to find excuses not to
prosecute. We want
legislation to be used to protect the vulnerable, not to criminalise women
and children. We want jury
trials and convictions, not witch-hunts.
We want justice not summary justice.
Crossroads
Women’s Centre, 230A Kentish Town Road, London NW5 2AB Tel: 020 7482 2496 Email: ecp@allwomencount.net or law@crossroadswomen.net
[i] “We asked the police what powers they wanted and gave them to them. . . . Summary justice through on-the-spot fines, seizure of drug dealers' assets, closure of pubs, clubs and houses that are the centre of drug use or disorder, naming and shaming of persistent ASB offenders, interim ASBO's, will be rolled out. Organised criminals will face not just the pre-emptive seizure of their assets, but will be forced to co-operate with investigations and will face trial without jury where there is any suggestion of intimidation of jurors. Abuse of court procedures, endless trial delays, the misuse of legal aid will no longer be tolerated. The purpose of the CJS reforms is to re-balance the system radically in favour of the victim, protecting the innocent but ensuring the guilty know the odds have changed.” Tony Blair, 19 July 2005 [ii]
Legal
Action for Women, working with the English Collective of Prostitutes and
Women Against Rape, co-ordinated the private prosecution brought by two
sex workers attacked by the same man in similar circumstances. For an
account see Some Mother’s Daughter – the hidden movement of prostitute
women against violence by the International Prostitutes Collective, and
visit www.allwomencount.net [iii]
Dr
Shipman, the biggest mass murderer we know of, benefited from widespread
bias in favour of those in caring professions against mainly elderly women
patients. Thus he was allowed
to continue and not reported to the police despite irregularities and
suspicion by the families of some of his victims as well as some of his
colleagues. Hundreds died as
a result. [iv] On 6 October 55 flats in Baker Street and the surrounding area were raided by police and immigration officials and over 70 women questioned for up to five hours.
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