Report Cites Stigmitisation as Reason Most Rape Cases Go Unreported

By Chiemelie Ezeobi

The latest poll results released by NOI Polls Limited, an Abuja-based opinion polling and research organisation, has revealed that most cases of rape go unreported primarily because of Stigmitisation.
The report also stated that
 almost three in 10 Nigerians admitted to personally knowing someone who has been a victim of rape.

The poll which sampled over 500 Nigerians across the six geo-political zones of the country, came up with its findings, urging the government to create public awareness against rape.
The report was geared by the recent rape case in India, which has sparked widespread series of protests against rape across India and further campaigns for women’s rights in several countries, including Nigeria.

NOI Polls has sought the opinion of Nigerians regarding the prevalence, and causes, of rape in the country, as well as solutions on how to curb the incidence of rape.
Respondents to the poll were asked six questions, with the first question seeking to establish the prevalence of rape in Nigeria: To what extent is rape predominant in the Nigerian society? The majority (38%) of respondents were of the opinion that rape is predominant “To a little extent”, followed by 29% who thought that it is predominant “To a large extent”. 

Also, 23% of the respondents stated that rape is predominant “To a very little extent” while 9% think it is predominant in the society “To a very large extent”. Only 1% of respondents interviewed said that rape is predominant in Nigeria “To no degree at all”.
Overall, 99% of Nigerians are of the opinion that rape is prevalent in the country from a very little to a very large extent. Therefore, this finding clearly highlights the prevalence of rape.
 Respondents were then asked: Do you personally know anyone that has been a victim of rape?  Curiously, almost 3 in 10 (29%) respondents admitted to personally knowing someone who had been a victim of rape; with the majority (68%) stating that they did not personally know any victim; while 3% refused to answer the question. 

Furthermore, in view of the debate that often arises about the cause(s) of rape in the society respondents were asked the following: What do you think is the prevalent cause of rape in the society? From the result, the majority of respondents (34%) were of the opinion that most prevalent cause of rape in the society is “Indecent dressing”; followed by 18% of respondents that cited “Unemployment”.
Also, “Lack of moral values” and the “Inability to control sexual urge” were each cited by 9% of the respondents as the prevalent cause of rape.

Other reasons mentioned by respondents include “Faulty upbringing” (7%), “Ungodliness”, “Illiteracy about women rights” and “Bad Company” (all with 5%).
Respondents were also asked if they agree that the majority of rape cases in Nigeria go unreported?  To this question about 8 in 10 Nigerians (79%) agreed that the majority of rape cases in Nigeria go unreported. Only 15% of the respondents do not agree that the majority of rape cases in Nigeria go unreported, while 6% refused to respond. 

Consequently, respondents who agreed that the majority of rape cases in Nigeria go unreported (79% of the total) were asked the fifth question: Why do you think the majority of rape cases go unreported? Interestingly, the majority of respondents (36%) said it’s because “Victims do not want to be stigmatised” followed by 29% who think it’s because “Families try to avoid disgrace”.
 Furthermore, 16% think it’s because “Families believe justice can’t be achieved”, 9% say that “Victims are often blamed” and 5% think that “Victims are mostly traumatized”.

According to NOI, these responses suggest that majority of rape cases go unreported due to pressures that seek to compel women to remain silent about rape in order to conform to the expected societal standards of women remaining chaste till marriage.
Finally, all respondents were asked: What do you think the Government should do to reduce the incidence of rape?  A slim majority of the respondents (33%) suggested that government should “Create public awareness against rape”, followed closely by 32% who said the government should “Enforce existing rape laws”. 

Furthermore, 13% advised the government to “Encourage the reporting of rape cases”; while 9% said they should “Promote the non stigmatisation of victims”.
The report added that from the poll, rape is prevalent in Nigeria, despite the fact that majority of the cases go unreported. 

It noted that such findings highlight a serious societal problem requiring urgent attention from the government, human rights groups, CSOs, NGOs and religious bodies.
The organisation urged the  government to take measures to reduce the incidence of rape, and aggressively enforcing existing rape laws.