Fatima’s story
Fatima suffered 8 years of physical agression and verbal abuse, leading her to call Rights of Women for help.
Maggie telephoned our legal advice line after one night her boyfriend forced her to have sex with him. She said she had been unable to resist him and had been too afraid to tell anyone or do anything the following day. Maggie’s mother had recently died and Maggie was extremely distressed. She felt that her boyfriend had exploited her at a point when she has been particularly vulnerable. She had contemplated suicide.
Our adviser talked to Maggie about what the law says about rape and consent. She was also advised to seek medical treatment and specialist emotional support and was given the contact details of other organisations that could help her. Our adviser talked to Maggie about reporting the offence to the police and the protection she is entitled to in the criminal justice system. As Maggie was finding it difficult to decide whether or not to report her boyfriend to the police our adviser talked to her at length about the pros and cons of reporting or not reporting the offence. We sent Maggie a free copy of From Report to Court: a handbook for adult survivors of sexual violence to provide further information and to help her make her decision.
Maggie contacted the advice line on a number of other occasions in the following months. She decided to report the offence to the police but the Crown Prosecution Service decided that there was insufficient evidence to charge her boyfriend. During each call our adviser was able to talk Maggie through the legal and practical issues. She was also able to advise her about other legal remedies such as applying for a non-molestation order to protect her from her ex-boyfriend.
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If it was not for the advice given to me by Rights of Women, together with the online resources and information sheets, I would not have been as informed as I am now or in a position to report the violence I experienced to the police. I felt believed and supported which helped me emotionally.
Rosa’s story
Rosa had originally come to the UK as a student 5 years ago, and called our advice line because she was experiencing violence in her relationship with her boyfriend, a British citizen.