Apologies matter, but so does what happens next

SCOTT Morrison’s national apology to survivors of institutional child sexual abuse was an important step, but government must ensure they get support too, writes Heath Ducker.

PRIME Minister Scott Morrison has delivered a national apology to the survivors, victims and families of institutionalised child sexual abuse.

As a survivor of child sexual abuse, I applaud the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse, and I applaud the government’s decision to take ownership of the horrendously inadequate response and apologise to survivors.

Many will be surprised that in the “lucky country”, sexual abuse is still rampant. The ABS estimated in 2005 that 1.294 million people living in Australia (337,400 males and 956,600 females) had experienced sexual abuse before the age of 15.

These figures do not reflect the total number of incidents of child sexual abuse, as much child sexual abuse goes unreported.

For victims, perhaps the greatest pain is the break in trust that occurs in the perpetration of the abuse. As the examples of institutional sexual abuse have shown, most children are abused by people they know. In many cases, this is even people they love — fathers, relatives, family friends, neighbours, carers.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison hugs an abuse survivor after the national apology to victims and survivors of institutional child sexual abuse. Picture: AAP/Lukas Coch

Children are innocent, and their innocent belief that adults (in particular people that care for them) would not hurt them, and the manipulation of their abusers (my abuser told me, an 11-year old child, that if I enjoyed the experience that meant I wanted it), leads victims to believe it is their fault. This manipulation and broken trust mean most are too afraid to come forward. Added to this is a general uncomfortableness people feel in discussing childhood sexual abuse, or sexual assault in general: this heightens their fear. The entire experience can have a lifetime effect on survivors’ mental health and relationships.

The Royal Commission has already demonstrated the great bravery and resilience of many survivors. It is my hope the apology will also help release the burden of years of internalised fear and shame felt due to the abuse suffered at the hands of people charged with looking after them. And that it will enhance the process of destigmatisation for all survivors — to feel greater power to speak about their suffering.

Of course, that is a responsibility we all share if we want to create a community that protects children from sexual abuse. The motivations of perpetrators are complex, but we can ensure the environments in which perpetrators feel safe to abuse children are as limited as possible.

The Royal Commission recommendations have done this, including by making institutional environments systematically safer.

Yet it is our willingness to continue to talk about the scourge of childhood sexual abuse, our active support of victims, and our collective belief that they are not to blame and have no shame, that will enable them to continue to come forward long term. This will put perpetrators on notice that they are likely to be found out and held accountable for their actions.

There were emotional reactions as Scott Morrison delivered the national apology to victims and survivors of instutional child sexual abuse. Picture: AAP/Lukas Coch

As such, the apology should mark not just the end of a chapter, but the beginning of renewed focus on support for survivors and those that work with them, especially given the continuing high rate of childhood sexual abuse in our society.

This is exemplified in our work at Youth Insearch. Of our Youth Insearch participants, almost 50 per cent have reported sexual abuse. Before the program, over 50 per cent report feelings of loneliness, anger and depression.

The importance of supporting organisations like Youth Insearch that work with victims is highlighted by my own story. Abused by my best friend’s father, as a child I believed I was to blame for having and continuing a relationship with my best friend (his son). I was fortunate enough to attend a Youth Insearch weekend workshop and I realised I didn’t have to be alone in my suffering, that I was normal, and that as a child I had no blame. This enabled me to come forward. Yet this is frequently not the case.

One of our Youth Insearch leaders, Aimee, recently said “the program helped me put names to what I had been experiencing”. I think this is one of the most important things Youth Insearch does — we help young people make sense of the things happening to them and give them the means to change their circumstances.

We want to let young people know their pain is real and needs to be addressed. Most importantly, we want them to know that someone cares. The apology is an important milestone, yet as is often said, “actions speak louder than words”. The government must provide adequate funding to the organisations that assist victims, and we can all work to create a society that supports and protects survivors across the board.

Heath Ducker is CEO of Youth Insearch, which helps young people face trauma through peer group support.

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Originally published as Apologies matter, but so does what happens next