Longford refuge centre for gender-based violence victims needs to open 'as soon as possible'

A promised refuge centre for victims of gender-based violence in Longford needs to be opened as soon as possible, the Dáil has heard. 

Longford TD Joe Flaherty raised concerns about a rise in gender-based violence around the country and no such centre in Longford. 

The Fianna Fail TD said the issue of gender-based violence is coming up at the clinics hosted by TDs around the country. 

During a debate, Deputy Flaherty said: "I would like the promised refuge centre for County Longford to come to fruition as soon as possible. However, I fear there is a certain creeping sense of acceptance of gender-based violence and, at some levels, it is being overlooked.

"I fear it is linked to the issue of consent and the prevalence of access to porn for young men and boys, in particular. They are being fed a warped sense of what constitutes consent and how they should behave.

"As other speakers said, it is only two years since the tragic death of Ashling Murphy. Can we turn around and say to our colleagues in the Chamber that much has changed over those two years? Is this truly a safer and better society? If we look into the deep recesses of our souls, we cannot say that things have changed during that time," the Longford TD said. 

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Tara Farrell, CEO, Longford Women's Link, recently described a judge's decision to suspend a sentence for Cathal Crotty, following an assault on a woman as “very concerning”. 

The decision comes in a ten year period that experienced the highest number of women killed in decades.

Ms Farrell says violence against women is at alarming levels in society: “We would be very concerned about the message being sent out to women. The message is that somebody can do this in full view, in broad daylight, and boast about it on social media and that there are no consequences for them. That's very concerning.”

Since opening their doors in 1995, Longford Women’s Link has provided a space for women to ‘develop their voice’ to address issues they and their families face. The service provides support to women engaging with the courts as victims.

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There is a shortfall in providing support for women who find themselves in difficult situations. Women who suffered domestic, sexual and gender-based violence in Longford, Roscommon, Cavan, Leitrim and five other counties across Ireland have no refuge.

The Longford Women's Link CEO believes violence against women is at a crisis point: “When you look at the 2023 Impact Report for Women's Aid, they've received the highest ever number of domestic abuse disclosures in 50 years. They're reporting a huge increase in numbers."

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