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Our statement on the online ‘rape academy'

We now recognise Gisèle Pelicot as the woman and survivor at the centre of a rape trial which shocked the world. Gisèle, who waived her anonymity to speak out, discovered that her husband had repeatedly drugged her so that she lost consciousness and invited dozens of men to rape her.

Following Gisèle’s case, journalists followed her story into one of the darkest corners of the internet. You may have seen recent media reports or posts on social media about a so-called online ‘rape academy’: an online community of men who are drugging their partners, subjecting them to sexual violence, recording it and sharing it with others.

The findings of this investigation are both difficult to come to terms with and deeply important. It demonstrates the prevalence of rape and sexual assault. It also highlights the lack of justice and accountability for perpetrators of these depraved offences.

As we confront the reality of rape and sexual violence which is carried out against women both across the world, we also recognise that this is happening much closer to home too. Around 95% of reported sexual offences in Scotland are carried out by men. From that, more than 90% of rape and sexual assault survivors know their attacker and more than 20% of survivors have been assaulted by a partner or former partner.

This must be a wake-up call about the normalisation of disturbing misogynistic content in online spaces and should prompt our governments and online regulators to scale up efforts to crack down on online sexual violence. There should be consequences for social media platforms and virtual spaces which help to spread messages of sexual violence and misogyny.

We understand that this recent news cycle may be extremely difficult for survivors to read and hear about.

The Rape Crisis Scotland helpline is open seven days a week from 5pm to midnight for anyone who wants to talk about how they’re feeling. We can also help put you in touch with support near you.