Councillor who was victim of assault critical of Minister’s role in Council of Europe Conference

A South Dublin county councillor who says she was the victim of harassment and assault by a public representative at a political event says she is concerned at how the Minister for Justice has ‘failed victims.’

Independent Dun Laoghaire Rathdown county councillor Deirdre Donnelly says she was referring specifically to the conference hosted by Minister Helen McEntee TD on domestic, sexual and gender-based violence this week in Dublin.

The two-day event is organised in the context of the Irish Chairmanship of the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe and in co-operation with the Council of Europe.

The aim of the conference is to provide a forum for Council of Europe member states to collectively address how to prevent and end violence against women.

“I welcome any initiative that addresses violence towards women”, said Councillor Deirdre Donnelly, “but feel it is quite hypocritical of a Minister and a government who have failed so many victims to be hosting it.”

Councillor Donnellly said she has been campaigning for ‘a better justice and political system’ since speaking out about her own experience last year.

Following harassment and assault by an elected representative that led to physical and psychological injuries, Councillor Donnelly says she brought the matter to the attention of his party (who did not deal with the matter adequately) and was encouraged to go to the Gardaí.

Last year she spoke out about her poor experience of the justice system on national radio describing it as “not fit for purpose”.

She subsequently wrote to all members of the Houses of the Oireachtas making some recommendations for change in how victims of sexual violence are treated.

“I am very grateful to those who reached out and raised my concerns.

“However, the majority of TDs and Senators do not seem to be motivated in any way to reform the justice system.

“I am particularly concerned about the approach the Minister for Justice has taken.

“Elements of the Justice Plan are still not implemented, recommendations on the O’Malley Report which was commissioned following a high-profile court case in 2018 have not been taken on board and there are so many other obvious matters that are not being dealt with.”

When Councillor Donnelly spoke out last year, she made recommendations that could be implemented without changes to legislation.

They included better Garda training and legal advice for complainants.

She was also critical of the time it took for the DPP to make a decision on whether to prosecute or not.

One of her biggest concerns, however, was the defendant’s access to a victim’s counselling records.

“People don’t believe this, but a victim’s personal counselling records can be subpoenaed in certain cases,” she said.

“This poses a huge invasion of privacy and is a violation of human rights.

“The system is totally on the side of the accused.” She added that she really feels ‘let down.’

“I have been failed by the justice system and the political system.

“The Minister for Justice is not addressing these issues and yet she is hosting a conference for her peers from Council of Europe states.

“Meanwhile the Minister for Local Government is encouraging women into political life but there are no guidelines on code of conduct and no support if a woman politician is assaulted.

“Dublin will be in the spotlight this week so I would urge our representatives to take a critical look at how these areas can be improved.”