“Abuse Can Happen To Any Woman, At Any Age” – Young Women Warned Of Dating Abuse

The 2in2u campaign by Women’s Aid Ireland is specifically targeting younger women in order to prevent another generation of domestic abuse. It also serves to remove the myth that only women in domestic relationships suffer “domestic” abuse.

The 2in2u campaign noted that the Women’s Aid Helpline were now receiving a growing amount of calls from younger women, as well as from parents of potentially abused daughters. The campaign attempts to highlight the way a controlling boyfriend’s behaviour can be overwhelming at the start of a relationship and how to watch out for warning signs.

The aim is to get the woman help in the early stages of the relationship before this connection becomes more established. In a national survey on domestic abuse in Ireland, almost 60% of those who had experienced severe abuse in intimate relationships first experienced it when they were under the age of 25.

The survey reminded that 39 young women aged between 18-25 years of age have been killed since 1996. Of the resolved cases, over half of the women were murdered by their partners or ex-partners.

Women’s Aid have also addressed the growing issue of stalking and have drawn attention to technology with women receiving constant abusive texts or phone calls. Director Margaret Martin commented: “We hear from women whose boyfriends and ex-boyfriends had placed lies about them on internet sites. We hear from women who had been photographed and filmed without their consent, sometimes having sex, and having the images uploaded to the internet."

Women who may be experiencing abuse in a relationship are encouraged to contact the Women’s Aid Freephone Helpline on 1800 341 900, take the relationship health quiz on www.2in2u.ie or visit www.womensaid.ie.