Fine Gael Minister Josepha Madigan revealed yesterday she has been sexually assaulted.
Ms Madigan, Minister for Special Education and Inclusion, was speaking in the Dail during a discussion on action to tackle sexual, domestic and gender based violence.
She said: “There are very few women my age who have not being subjected to some form of sexual assault in their respective lifetimes and I know this because I’m one of them.”
The mother-of-two said she takes statistics she reads about sexual violence issues “with a pinch of salt”.
She said: “It won’t come as a surprise to those of us of a similar age who have suffered trauma and sometimes we have suffered it more than once.
“It was and is a lot more common than many believe. Most victims do not report their crimes and there are many reasons for this: shame, a fear of judgement and a desire to forget are among the reasons and it shouldn’t be this way.”
The 51-year-old TD said recent events such as the murder of Sarah Everard in the UK have highlighted how vulnerable women are.
She added: “No doubt there is someone watching this speech live or reading it later, someone near to you at this very moment in time in a town, in a public space, a street or a home where some form of sexual assault or violation is taking place.”
The Minister said the “scary part” of sexual assault was that “it is not always the random monster in the middle of the night but often a friend, a spouse or an acquaintance or someone you know”.
Ms Madigan was praised on social media for disclosing her own personal experience.
MEP Frances Fitzgerald tweeted: “It takes great courage to share such a personal story.”
