Sexual violence not as high as media reports indicate: Acadia

An investigative story about sexual assaults on Canadian university campuses by the CBC set off a firestorm in Wolfville recently.

Acadia University released the fact that campus authorities had documented 22 reports of sexual assault over a five year period. When adjusted for population, the CBC suggested it has the highest rate of reporting in the country.

The statistics for the same period within Kings District RCMP show that since Jan. 1, 2010, there were a total of 425 sexual assault reports made in the county. These files include reports of sexual assault, sexual interference, sexual exploitation, luring minors over the Internet for sexual purposes and invitation to sexual touching.

Of the total number, Const. Kelli Gaudet with the Kings District RCMP said 44 reports came from the Town of Wolfville.

So far this year, no reports have been made, while last year there were just two.

County-wide, seven reports have come in during 2015. There were 94 in 2014 and 72 the previous year.

According to Gaudet, of the files that were opened a portion resulted in charges, some were unfounded and others were investigated and concluded.

“Statistics can be helpful and I think that these low rates of reporting give us important information,” says Angela Johnston, who leads one of five demonstration efforts in the province at the Red Door in Kentville.

“It tells us that most people who experience sexual violence are not reporting their experiences to the RCMP. The challenge here is to look at these statistics and understand that they are not a reflection of the number of sexual assaults being committed, but are instead evidence that the current reporting process does not meet the needs of survivors of sexual violence.”

Johnston ponders whether the police could make any changes that might lead to increased reporting among survivors.

“How will these rates of reporting be impacted if the RCMP distributed material promoting the importance of reporting? What changes would we see if there was a dedicated phone number for reporting and the phone was managed by a trauma-informed operator?” she said.

“What change would we see if survivors had access to an advocate prior to making a statement? What change would we see if survivors were provided with counseling and support during the reporting process?”

She also believes there could be a difference in reporting numbers if survivors knew they can request to provide statements at home or in a safe place of their choosing, instead of an interrogation room at a local detachment.

“It is likely that we will see rates of reporting increase as a result of prevention efforts, and that the number of incidents of sexual violence may begin to decrease while the reporting rate begins to increase,” she added.

“This is why these statistics could very easily be misinterpreted. These statistics are one small (very small) piece of the larger reality of sexual violence in our community.”

A release from Acadia after the CBC story emerged questioned whether comparing one university to another accurately is possible because, across Canada, there is no standard method of capturing data, no standard definition of sexual assault for reporting purposes and no standard reporting by size and type of university.

There is also no standard reporting relationships between investigative bodies, such as police forces and campus security personnel, and chronic underreporting overall.

The CBC sensationalized a story that could have been used to bring about positive change, the release said.

“Sexual assault is unacceptable, no matter what the statistics. We appreciate that CBC is attempting to bring necessary attention to this societal issue, but to do so in such a manner by attempting to use flawed statistics is not only unhelpful, it is just wrong,” according to Susan Mesheau, vicepresident of enrolment and student services.

“It is far easier for a small university to develop excellent relationships with students, the community, and policing bodies, to put good systems in place for reporting incidents and to support its students.”

She added that Acadia takes the issue of sexual assault very seriously.

“The Acadia community – students, faculty and staff cooperatively – has been working diligently for many years to do that, and we have adopted the broadest possible definition of sexual assault,” she said.